Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer just signed a contract extension in July, and so far, there hasn’t been any indication that club brass are seriously considering sacking him. That’s now though, and the situation could change drastically and quickly, should the run of awful results continue.
That’s the story heading into United’s next match, at home versus Atalanta in the Champions League competition. Calls for Solskjaer’s head are rising, especially after this past weekend’s disaster at Leicester City. It appears he’s lost some of his own players too.
Manchester United vs Atalanta (UCL) FYIs
Kick: Wed Oct 20, 8pm BST, Old Trafford
United Starting XI Prediction: go here
TV: BT Sport 3
UCL Standings, Form Guide: United 3rd, 3pts, WL Atalanta 1st, 4pts, WD
These comments from midfielder Paul Pogba are particularly eye-brow raising:
“We need to find the key for this change because we deserved to lose. I don’t know if it is the mindset of the players. We need to change something. We need to find the mentality and tactics to win. We have to look as individuals and as a team to fix this.”
While Pogba isn’t directly calling out OGS, any time there is a questioning of tactics and mentality, well those are the responsibilities of the gaffer, plain and simple.
Team News
There is other United news right now, beyond just the “will Ole stay or go?” narrative. Fred and Edinson Cavani will be back in the mix here, having not arrived from South America in time to play at the weekend, and the Premier League caring about nothing but money (from tv) in response to that situation.
Anthony Martial was out injured over the weekend and is expected to stay sidelined for this one.
Prediction: United 2, Atalanta 1
OGS always seems to somehow get result, even if it’s ugly, whenever he’s cornered like this.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America” and “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 and the Chicago Tribune.
He co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.