OGS: Utd stars thought they were too good to 'just defend' vs City & Liverpool

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer claims his Manchester United team thought they were too good to just defend against top sides - and believes that's part of the club's DNA.

The former Man United boss, 51, said their main strength was 'counter-attacking' but felt a 'responsibility' to use a certain style of football while in charge.

Solskjaer managed United between December 2018 and November 2021, leading them to as high as second in the Premier League but failing to win a trophy.

The Norwegian was often criticised for a supposed lack of tactical approach and carefree setup, as his last four games saw a 5-0 thrashing at home to Liverpool, a 3-0 win over Spurs, a 2-0 home defeat by Manchester City, and a 4-1 drubbing at Watford.

'The thing was, the players also felt, and maybe wrongly so, thought, we are a better team than just defending,' Solskjaer told the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet.

'There were players whose main strength was counterattacking and running and digging in – to be honest.

'And in previous years, you had players like Andreas Pereira, Dan James, Jesse Lingard, players that could run all day for you. And it’s easy to set up a team and beat City away from home.

'At Manchester United you have a responsibility as well for the fans to enjoy the game. Don’t just go and get a result.'

He also said: 'That’s exactly what I was thinking [to take the next step and be the dominant team].

'I can’t be, because there’s a chance you’re going to lose anyway, those two Liverpool and [Manchester] City – two of the best teams in the world in the last four or five years. Absolutely top teams. There’s a chance you’re going to lose anyway – if you lose without having a go, it’s like, ‘What’s the point?’

Even when United finished second in 2020/21, they still managed to concede 44 goals - the most of any top-four side and only two fewer than 16th-placed Brighton.

Solskjaer's positive energy got fans on board, with the chant 'Ole's at the wheel' being created in his honour, but at other times they looked desperately disorganised and inconsistent.

His final league season got off to a fine start with four wins and a draw, but the wheels came off with a run of five defeats in seven in September, October, and November.

He added: 'It was coming to a point - we lost to Liverpool 5-0 and lost to [Manchester] City 2-0 at home in two games, and in-between we beat Tottenham 3-0 away.

'But those two home games, I always looked at them as we need to be Manchester Utd, try to be United, don’t defend, don’t be counterattacking, just let the players go out there, go toe-to-toe with them because otherwise there’s no point at being at Manchester United.

'You've got to, at some point take the next step – and they weren’t ready. Just not good enough.'

Solskjaer has not stepped back in to management since his sacking by Man United two-and-a-half years ago.

His most recent role has been working as a technical observer for UEFA, producing tactical reports from Champions League matches for the governing body.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet.