"I hope I leave the team in a better condition than when I headed it": why Solskjaer left Manchester United

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's and Manchester United's paths parted.

The day before, the specialist left the post of head coach of the Mankunians, which he had held since December 2018.

The retirement came after a crushing defeat at Watford, another point in a string of failures this season.

Michael Carrick, who was a member of the Norwegian's coaching staff, has been appointed temporary mentor of the Red Devils.

The club in its press release dedicated to the dismissal of Solskjaer, touchingly said goodbye to him and urged the fans to remember the work done by the specialist, and also not to forget that while still a player, he forever entered the history of the team.

“Ole will always be a Manchester United legend.

We regret to report that we made this difficult decision.

While recent weeks have been disappointing, they should not overshadow all the work he has done over the past three years to rebuild the foundation for long-term success.

Ole leaves with our sincere gratitude for his tireless efforts as head coach and our best wishes for the future, ”the statement said.

Solskjaer himself, in an interview with the club press service, expressed gratitude for the opportunity to lead the team in which he spent most of his career.

The Norwegian noted that he is leaving his post due to the unsatisfactory results that have followed United over the past weeks.

“You know what this club means to me and what I wanted to achieve with it. I wanted us to take the next step towards winning the Premier League, winning the trophies. I leave through the front door because I think everyone knows that I gave myself completely to the club. He means a lot to me, we are a good match for each other, but, unfortunately, I did not bring the result we needed, and it was time for me to leave. It was a great honor and privilege for me to be entrusted with the opportunity to lead Manchester United forward. I really hope that I leave the team in a better condition than when I headed it, "Solskjaer admitted.

The main reason for the separation was the club's unsuccessful performance in the English Championship.

The beginning of the season was quite encouraging for the current vice-champions of the Premier League - Manchester United scored 13 points in five starting rounds and even headed the standings for some time.

But in the first round of the Champions League, Manchester United lost to the Swiss Young Boys, and the English League Cup to West Ham.

From that moment on, the Mankunians began a real black streak in the Premier League.

In the next seven rounds, the Red Devils earned only four points, including suffering sensitive defeats to direct competitors - Leicester (2: 4), Liverpool (0: 5) and Manchester City (0: 2) ...

The last straw for the club's management was the defeat from Watford (1: 4), which at that time was 16th in the Premier League.

Manchester United after that dropped to eighth place in the Premier League.

At the same time, the position of the club in the Champions League is not so precarious. In Group F, United tied for first place with Villarreal, with which they will play their first game without Solskjaer on 23 November, after which the English will be left to play at home with the Young Boys. It will be enough for Manchester to score two points to make it to the playoffs. However, between these matches, the team is still waiting for meetings with Chelsea and Arsenal, which will complicate the task for the team left without a head coach.

Solskjaer's temporary replacement will be Michael Carrick, who also played for Manchester United for many years and then remained at the club in a coaching position. The club is looking for a mentor. According to The Athletic, five specialists are being considered: Zinedine Zidane, Laurent Blanc, Brendan Rogers, Julen Lopetegui and Mauricio Pochettino. The latter, according to Talksport, would like to see Sir Alex Ferguson as a mentor - the legendary coach, whose name is associated with the golden years of Manchester United.

Since Ferguson's departure in 2013, Manchester United have no longer won the Premier League or the Champions League. Each of his followers, including David Moyes, Louis van Gaal and José Mourinho, left office due to poor results. Solskjaer, compared to them, managed the longest running Manchester United. At the same time, he did not win a single significant title, although last season he was very close to this - the club reached second place in the English championship and the Europa League final.

The one who replaces Solskjaer will have to solve an extremely difficult task again - to recoup the huge investment in the team with worthy results in one of the most competitive leagues in the world.

The transfer value of all Manchester United players is now estimated at more than € 900 million (second in England after Manchester City).

The team has collected many stars of world football, including Cristiano Ronaldo who returned to the club last summer.

The Portuguese striker was one of the first to thank Solskjaer and wish him continued success.

“He was a forward when I first arrived at Old Trafford, he became my coach when I returned to Manchester United.

But first of all, Ole is an outstanding person.

I wish him the best in everything that is in store for him in this life.

Good luck my friend!

You deserve it, ”wrote Ronaldo on Instagram.

According to former Manchester United footballer Wayne Rooney, the players, not the coach, should be responsible for the team's latest performance.

He positively assessed the work of Solskjaer and said that the coach returned stability to the club, but not everything can depend on him alone.

“I was very disappointed when I watched the game yesterday (the match with Watford. -

).

The coach can give instructions, get in shape and explain tactics, but there is no excuse for what some players have shown.

It is unacceptable that they swing their arms, lose the ball and blame other players for it.

I would be very unhappy if I saw this with my charges.

They represent one of the largest, if not the largest, club in the world and must understand that playing for him is a privilege, "Rooney said.