I Could’ve Achieved What Ole Gunnar Solskjaer Has Achieved At Manchester United – Paul Ince

Paul Ince caused drama over the weekend when he said he could have achieved what Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has achieved at Manchester United.

He recent broke down what he meant.

His words, “I am not just a pundit who has never managed a club – I have managed in the Premier League and all four English professional divisions, so no-one can say I don’t know what I am talking about here.

And, as a manager, I could see the signs that under Mourinho the players were not happy and the atmosphere and environment was not great. Let’s be honest, everyone could see that.

My argument was that it was easy for whoever came in after that to right the ship, and lift the players and the dressing room – and put the whole club back on track.

When I said anyone could have come in and done the same, I did not mean to be disrespectful to Ole.

What I meant was any manager – for example myself, Mark Hughes or Steve Bruce – could have recognised the issues at Old Trafford and come in and changed the environment in a positive way.

There is far more to it than just bringing some of the fun back, but you would start by allowing the players to play with freedom, and in their correct positions too.

Ole has done all of that and has obviously made a big difference.

With his results, he has then taken it on to the next level too – but even that improvement does not mean he is the right man to get the job in the summer.”

“I have got absolutely nothing against Ole, but when I look at teams who have done something similar, and given permanent jobs to interim managers who turned things around in a short space of time, not many of them have lasted very long.

Roberto Di Matteo at Chelsea is a good example of that, as is Craig Shakespeare at Leicester.

Shakespeare did brilliantly when he first replaced Claudio Ranieri in February 2017, but he was soon gone.

Di Matteo was appointed caretaker manager in March 2012, won the Champions League and FA Cup in May, signed a permanent contract in June – and was sacked in November.

Chelsea thought at the time that what he had won meant they had to appoint him but, long-term, he was the wrong choice.

It could be the same with Solskjaer – no matter what he achieves this season, it will not mean he is the right man to take the club forward.”