Former Manchester United coach Steve McClaren has praised Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s intelligence, saying ‘anything could happen’ with the Norwegian in charge.
It has been a wonderful start to Solskjaer’s reign at Old Trafford, winning nine of his 10 games in charge, a run which has seen them move to within just two points of the Premier League‘s top four despite taking over the club with an 11 point deficit.
While the Norwegian has been helped by a fairly generous fixture list so far, he has already masterminded away victories over Tottenham and Arsenal, earning praise for his tactical astuteness on each occasion.
Having worked with Solskjaer during his playing days at Manchester United, former Red Devils coach Steve McClaren has spoken about the former striker’s intelligence and good communication skills.
“I think everyone was astonished at the appointment,” McClaren told Sky Sports News. “(But) I know Ole well. He’s a thinker and he’s intelligent.
“He’s a very good communicator with players. He’s come into a situation where some people said he had nothing to lose – but he had everything to lose.
“No pressure? There’s enormous pressure. It’s one of the three biggest clubs in the world, so that’s pressure in management. You put pressure on yourself because you want to do well, and I know Ole’s ambitions.
“I think he’s exceeded all expectations. They’ve played exciting, attacking, Manchester United old traditional football. And if it continues to work, I think Manchester United will have an easy decision to make at the end of the season.
“I’ve got to say he has tremendous staff around him; Mike Phelan must be a great help. The players have bought into it all very quickly and adapted to what they want and it’s working.
“Ole proved in the Tottenham game last month what a good tactician he is and United will be a threat to all the top teams. And who knows – if you go on a run – anything can happen.”
Manchester United face Fulham at the weekend, before a tricky run of fixtures against PSG, Chelsea and Liverpool – a fixture list which could determine Solskjaer’s chances of landing the United manager’s job on a more permanent basis.