Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has urged his young Manchester United side to put games to bed, having seen them taken to penalties by League One Rochdale on Wednesday night.
It was a game that Manchester United dominated virtually every stat imaginable, including having 31 attempts on goal, though the deadlock was only broken in the 68th minute through 17-year-old Mason Greenwood, who scored his second professional goal after some impressive solo work in the box.
However, of their 31 shots, Dale goalkeeper Robert Sanchez was only forced into seven saves, before 16-year-old Luke Matheson grabbed a famous equaliser for the Greater Manchester side in the 76th minute to set up a penalty shootout in front of the Stretford End.
United booked their place in the fourth round draw thanks to a Sergio Romero save in the shootout, but it wasn’t the first time that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side had taken a lead this season, only to see themselves pegged back.
The Old Trafford outfit have taken the lead in five out of their six Premier League games this season, only for Wolves, Southampton and Crystal Palace to come from behind to get a result.
Speaking to MUTV after the nervy win over Rochdale, Solskjaer insisted his side need to “get the second” goal to kill games off.
“We go 1-0 up in many games and, today again, we go 1-0 up and you think go on then, get the second, which is the key now. And that’s a learning curve for these boys as well. We need to go for the second.
“At this club, we don’t just sit back and hope that’s enough. If you settle for good enough, that’s not what we want.”
Man United will now face Chelsea in the next round of the League Cup.
Read: Erling Haaland reveals Solskjaer’s ‘huge impact’ amid Manchester United links
See also: Five of the biggest League Cup upsets in the competition’s history
