Manchester United resume their 2020/21 season when they host Brighton & Hove Albion in Premier League play. Ahead of this match there is a ton of news and transfer talk items to discuss. United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made his goalkeeping plans clear publicly, as he’ll rotate Dean Henderson and David de Gea during the run in of this campaign.
He also spoke on the latest Erling Haaland transfer narratives, and we’ll cover both of these stories, and more, in this post.
Brighton & Hove Albion at Manchester United FYIs
Kickoff: Sun Apr 4, 7:30pm, Old Trafford
United Starting XI Prediction: go here
Team news for both sides: go here
TV, Stream: BT Sport, BTSport.com, BT Sport app
PL Position, Form: United 2nd, 57pts, WWDDW Brighton 16th, 32pts, WWLLL
We’ll start with Haaland, who has been widely linked with a move to United the past year or so. He’s also been linked to Manchester City and Chelsea. And you have two clubs who might be ahead of the trio of English giants in FC Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Haaland’s reps have reportedly met with the two clubs who comprise the El Clasico rivalry, prompting a reporter to probe Solskjaer, who previously coached Haaland at Molde, about the reports.
“I am focusing on the next two months and whatever happens in the world of football, there are so many places anyone can go to,” Solskjaer responded.
“For us, I am focused on the ones who are here. Even though I’ve worked with Erling, it is not right for me as a Man United manager talking about Erling. I can talk about him as an ex coach of his, but he will make his own mind up. Who we are interested in, I don’t want to comment.
“Now there are lot of rumours. Hopefully we can sit here with a player no one has written about.”
While that didn’t shed much light on anything, OGS is saying all the right things here, because it never serves a manager well to talk up transfer targets in the media. All that publicity does is drive up the asking price for all clubs who are interested. It’s going to be a sensational silly season, and the fun has already started.
Moving on to the goalie situation, it looks like we have a true, strong position battle on our hands. Eventually, it will have to sort itself out.
“You know, I have the great option of two top goalkeepers and it’s a pleasure to have them here,” Solskjaer responded to a query on the topic today.
“We’ve got hopefully got nine plus five games to go – we want to go all the way in the Europa League as well. I’m sure you’ll see both of them playing in goal for us.”
With both shotstoppers viewing themselves as worthy of being the true No. 1, the United gaffer was asked if there is a hard decision to be made this summer transfer window.
“Well, I understand the question and the narrative in the media,” OGS answered.
“There’s always where there’s tension or where there can be potential tension or controversy, that’s where everyone wants to hear a comment from me. What I can say is what I’ve said so many times, I’ve got great options playing the two of them.
“Top keepers but of course both of them want to play as much as possible and that will be decided on merit. “That will be who do we think going to give us a win on any given day.”
We’ll just have to be see how it all plays out during the stretch run, starting on Sunday when we see who starts in between the sticks. And that development could affect what the club decides to do in the summer window.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and SB Nation. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.