Solskjaer’s Manchester United stint summed up by messages scrawled across one of his tactics boards

Solskjaer’s Manchester United stint

Though a brilliant manager on his day, Jose Mourinho can often leave a club in pretty dire straits.

The Portuguese’s aggressive, hostile approach to both player management and the press can leave clubs in rather dejected, deflated environments.

This would be the case at Manchester United. Despite being the club’s most successful manager in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, when Mourinho left United at the end of 2018, it was clear that all was not well at the club.

So, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was brought in on an interim basis to steady the ship. And the Norwegian thanks to his positive attitude and a hit of nostalgia, did look to have made Old Trafford a much more positive environment.

Solskjaer’s messages on tactics board sum up Man United tenure

So, when the Manchester Evening News revealed on Sunday what was written on one of Solskjaer’s tactics boards in his office, it seemed pretty poetic as all of the phrases on the board were motivational and homed in on the idea of doing the basics well and with a positive attitude:

On a tactics board in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s office, a list of platitudes were scrawled across the pitch diagrams.

They read: Game management – simple and efficient – do the simple things well and with pride – go and do your magic PLAY FOR THE TEAM

However, it is also pretty telling that Solskjaer’s tactics board had no actual tactics written on it.

That sums up his time in Manchester well. He was brought in to turn the mood around and did that just fine.

However, when it came time to implementing a proper style and having his star-studded, expensive squad go head-to-head with the best managers in Europe, Solskjaer fell very, very short because, though he did a good job of lifting the mood post-Mourinho, it was clear that Ole never had the ability to truly compete on a tactical/coaching level with the likes of Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp.

Instead, much like his tactics board, Solskjaer relied on basic principles and the individual brilliance of his players to succeed at United.

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