Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s return to Manchester United is about putting smiles back on faces of both players and fans, but it will be impossible to sustain the sunshine if performances and results continue as they have been.
This job, albeit interim, is about more than motivation. Solskjaer needs to sift through the mess left by Jose Mourinho to find a team that can resemble the real United. He must rediscover a forgotten rationale.
The materials are clearly there, but Mourinho shook the Magic 8-Ball on selections so often, and veered so wildly and regularly on judgements of players, it is difficult to know the truth of the matter on certain individuals or systems.
Here, Sportsmail highlights five areas for Solskjaer to address.
Pick a formation
By the end, Mourinho gave the distinct impression he constructed line-ups via the principles of settling scores and countering opponents. We hear now Luke Shaw was dropped for the last two games because he pulled out of the Fulham match, while Paul Pogba remaining on the bench at Liverpool was the final act of their toxic power struggle.
The back-three system used at Anfield looked thrown together on a whim, with Matteo Darmian in from the cold to operate out of position as one of the central defenders, and overall the line-up was picked primarily to thwart Liverpool’s attacking prowess rather than provide Virgil Van Dijk something to think about.
United have shifted arbitrarily between 3-4-3, 4-2-3-1, and 4-3-3, spreading confusion and uncertainty. Without that anchor of understanding they have been a listless ship. Solskjaer has to assess which formation best suits his squad and persist with it. Get those on-pitch partnerships going.
Drill the defence
United have conceded one more Premier League goal than Huddersfield this season. Solskjaer is inheriting the fifth worst top-flight record. It is a remarkable situation for a club that has spent in the region of £150million on current defenders. As we know, it was the area that Mourinho wanted addressing in the summer and clearly the backline would benefit hugely from added authority.
But Mourinho’s complaints during the transfer window acted as a self-fulfilling prophecy. What good does it do for the confidence of Chris Smalling, Victor Lindelof or Eric Bailly to know that your manager wants big money spent on a new defender so strongly that he is willing to go to war with the board over it? Effectively tell your defenders they’re rubbish and they might just start thinking it and playing like it too.
They can’t be snowflakes to criticism but was there any need to dig out Phil Jones and Bailly over a penalty shootout against Derby? Again, the frequent changes appear to have undermined relationships.
Revive the attack
We are approaching Christmas and United’s goal difference stands at zero. WHAT? At this stage last season Burnley and Leicester had positive goal difference. Two years ago West Brom and Southampton were in the black. No matter the problems, United should not be comparable to those clubs when almost half way through the campaign.
Something is badly wrong when Alexis Sanchez, Anthony Martial, Romelu Lukaku, and Marcus Rashford are available but the goals total stands at 29. Martial is the only one on form, scoring seven times, but generally Mourinho’s safety first tactics have hugely inhibited a quality attacking unit. It cannot be a coincidence that Rashford plays without fear for England but seems to question his decisions for United.
The offensive patterns woven to devastating effect by Manchester City come through hours of practise on the training pitches, yet Mourinho preferred to let his forward players find things out in matches, focussing instead on defensive duties when at Carrington. Solskjaer was part of the most famous forward foursome in the club’s history so should be able to convey the balance required.
The players themselves also have to take responsibility. Lukaku has admitted he came back from summer heavy with muscle and he needs to keep working to slim down, while Sanchez has to get his head back in the game.
Operation Pogba
It would be unwise of Solskjaer to follow former team-mate Gary Neville’s lead and tell Paul Pogba to ‘do one as well’, much as he might like to. Solskjaer has to become the diplomat in seeking answers for why the 25-year-old can be one of the driving forces behind France’s World Cup win, then play like a drain back in Manchester.
Max Allegri and Didier Deschamps have been able to extract the best from Pogba, who now has no reasons for substandard performances. It is said Pogba wanted out of Old Trafford with or without Mourinho, but Solskjaer can remind him that at his inevitable cost he will not go anywhere unless he is pulling up trees.
He needs to cut out the slack passes, the unnecessary tricks, the general laissez-faire attitude. The most sparkling moments for United in recent years have usually centred on the player with joy in his game, and good management is about tapping into that.
Wrong said Fred
United completed their fifth-highest transfer in history when paying Shakhtar Donetsk £52million for midfielder Fred. Even in today’s market it ranks as a colossal commitment of funds. But the return has been so far pretty pathetic.
Fred has started six Premier League games and it is difficult to work out the exact point of his signing. Ander Herrera already seemed to fill the role of energetic destroyer and Fred has appeared rather aimless when he has played. Perhaps like Fabinho he needs time to settle in England, but it is tough to see the end point in his development. Fabinho was sought after, Fred not so much. Does he have a future at Old Trafford? Solskjaer must try to find the potential.
