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Solskjaer rules out Man United signing a new defender this summer

  /  autty

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insists his Manchester United defence is good enough to succeed without reinforcements and claims their issues are simply down to a lack of sharpness.

The Manchester United manager is under pressure to bolster his options after losing their first Premier League game of the season at home to Crystal Palace, before struggling to beat Brighton away – securing a 3-2 win with a penalty in the 10th minute of additional time.

As it stands, the Red Devils have only added Dutch midfielder Donny van de Beek to their side, but questions have been asked about the defensive partnership of Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof.

However, Solskjaer ruled out the possibility of adding a centre-back to his ranks during the transfer window while speaking at a media conference after United's win at Brighton.

He said: 'We've got many defenders here and I put Eric (Bailly) on to bolster the defence, following the runs of Trossard and Maupay.

'For me, we've got enough good centre-backs here at the moment.

'When you concede chances and concede goals, there are two different things you can look at - it's either the team shape, or are there any individual mistakes.

'We're not in our best shape of form, our shape isn't there, we're not sharp enough to stop crosses or follow the runs.

'We're a little bit behind, that's more structural mistakes than individual mistakes. I thought Victor did well today.'

With fans growing more anxious as the transfer deadline of October 5 approaches, Solskjaer defended his players by saying the squad will improve as they play more matches after a shortened pre-season.

'We've got to be honest enough to say they created the most chances. Maybe 50-50 possession but they had loads of shots, big chances and that's not what we want. We need to improve a lot in the weeks coming forward,' the boss said.

'The spirit and character of the boys I don't question at all, the spirit is there. The sharpness and fitness might not be, but it is going to come.

'We've got three or four weeks to catch up and the more games we play, the more 90 minutes we get, we'll be sharper and sharper.'