He is modelling his approach on how Ferguson did the job for 26 years.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has had the perfect month as Manchester United caretaker manager and the Norwegian has arguably overachieved.
- He has recorded seven victories in seven games.
- United are playing exciting attacking football again
- The fans and the players are happier than they have been in years.
- United are now only three points away from Chelsea in fourth spot.
Solskjaer has proved a lot of people wrong in the process, particularly those who claimed the players, and not the manager, was the root cause of United’s troubles this season.
Or those who questioned the appointment of the Molde manager, whose only experience as a manager in British football was an unsuccessful spell as Cardiff City coach back in 2014.
Solskjaer has helped exorcise the ghost of Jose Mourinho from Old Trafford and has done so the Alex Ferguson way.
According to Rob Dawson, writing for ESPN, Solskjaer has said privately that he has modelled his approach on how Ferguson conducted himself during his 26 years as United manager.
The Norwegian has praised his players in public but hasn’t been afraid to deploy the “hairdryer” treatment in private – as he did at half-time of the FA Cup victory over Reading at the start of January.
However, like Ferguson, Solskjaer quickly moves on and doesn’t bear any grudges.
Like his former manager, Solskjaer has also “implemented a strict dress code” before and after games. Players must wear their club suits and are not allowed to wear baseball caps, hats or brightly coloured trainers. They also aren’t allowed to wear large headphones when getting off the team bus before a game.
The report claims that Solskjaer has mirrored Ferguson’s approach right down to the smallest detail. Like Ferguson, he sits in the back row of the dugout at Old Trafford – whereas Mourinho sat in the front row.
This caused confusion when Alexis Sanchez sat in Solskjaer’s seat during the win over Reading and had to be moved.
When you sit in the gaffer's seat 😂 pic.twitter.com/6IGhTGj8wV
— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) January 5, 2019
The United caretaker manager is in “daily contact” with Ferguson, who watched the team train before the wins over Bournemouth and Tottenham Hotspur. Solskjaer has also visited Ferguson at his home in Cheshire.
Dawson writes that, regardless of Solskjaer’s success this season, there are no guarantees that he will get the job on a permanent basis. But he has done his chances no harm at all.
You can read the full report here.
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