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Manchester United sacked Jose Mourinho in the aftermath of the defeat against arch-rivals Liverpool and appointed a former Red Devil and a fan-favourite, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as a caretaker manager until the end of the season.
The selection of Solskjaer came as a surprise to many who would have liked to see someone with more experience to manage the Red Devils. However, United is imprinted within Solskjaer, and he would give his best as the manager as well.
The club is in all sort of problems at the moment, and Solskjaer as an interim manager needs to clear some of the mess. Here are the three critical issues that the Norwegian needs to take care of during his short stay in Manchester:
#3 Make the team play an attacking brand of football
Since the era of Matt Busby to Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United was known to entertain the fans through their style of play. Teams came to the Theatre of Dreams with the fear of facing a barrage of attacks.
The Red Devils were known to make the pitch large with the fullbacks marauding forward to support the attacking players. There was a rhythm and synchronization in the way Manchester United played in those eras. However, the current United team is far away from such play and the fear factor is no more left at Old Trafford.
The downfall started with the appointment of David Moyes which was made worse by Jose Mourinho. The Portuguese's defensive style of play didn't go down well with the fans who got used to seeing their side wearing teams down with pressure.
The departure of Jose might be a blessing in disguise for the fans who can now expect to see a more attacking football under their interim manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The former Manchester United forward played in an era where attack was the only form of defence. He needs to do the same as the manager as well.
#2 Get the best out of Paul Pogba
Paul Labile Pogba is one of the biggest names in world football. The Frenchman came through the ranks at Old Trafford before moving to Juventus in search of more game time. He spent four successful years in Turin winning the Seria A in each of his four seasons.
However, his heart always wanted to come back to the place where it all began for Paul. Finally, in 2016, Pogba signed for Manchester United making him the world's most expensive player at the time. After a patchy couple of seasons, the relationship with the manager reached nadir as he got dropped from the starting XI.
Pogba's absence meant United had a severe lack of creativity in the midfield which no one has been able to fulfil. The game against Liverpool was a testament of that where the Red Devils had only six shots on target. They didn't have enough quality in the team to break through the Liverpool rearguard.
Solskjaer knows Pogba since the academy days and very much understands the potential of the World Cup winner. He can win games on his own. The manager just needs to put an arm by the collar to ensure that the Frenchman produces his best on the field.
#1 Try to finish in the top four
Manchester United are currently nineteen points off the league leaders, Liverpool and eleven points off the fourth place, Chelsea in the Premier League. The season which started with a victory at home to Leicester City failed to take off with the manager complaining about the weak defence and the players not giving their 100 per cent.
The recent defeat against arch-rivals Liverpool summed up how poor United have been this season which resulted in Jose Mourinho's dismissal as the Manchester United manager. His successor, Solskjaer, has his task cut out if he intends to win over the Old Trafford faithful.
Amidst all the responsibilities Ole has, the primary focus should be on getting results and finishing in the top four. The manager has nothing to lose and a winnable set of fixtures coming up, he could go all out to ensure Champions League football at Old Trafford next season.
