Manchester United: Solskjaer has proven everything he needed to prove

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has proven everything he needed to prove during his time as interim manager at Manchester United.

Last night, Manchester United overcame Arsenal on their home territory. The FA Cup is a competition in which the Gunners always prevail so that just makes United’s win all the more impressive.

Manchester United was on a downward trajectory with Jose Mourinho at the helm so things would only get better. However, I don’t think even Ed Woodward and company thought that Solskjaer would have the impact that he has done.

The players have benefited

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There has been a number of players to benefit from the interim manager’s philosophy. In fact, many forgot the talent that United possessed until the Norwegian took charge.

The likes of Marcus Rashford, Romelu Lukaku and Paul Pogba have been unlocked and relieved of their shackles. You could even throw Alexis Sanchez into that list after his fantastic goal last night, although it’s yet to be seen whether he can progress from that.

Mourinho had a defensive philosophy, meaning a lot of the attacking players were forced back at times. This had a huge impact on not only their morale but their goalscoring input. However, Solskjaer has always been attack-minded in his approach so this has resulted in an abundance of goals.

Manchester United is a threat to the big teams again

When he first took charge, many rival fans criticised Solskjaer for being a flat-track bully. And rightly so, given he had an easy run of fixtures, to begin with. However, he has proven all of his critics wrong, keeping up his 100% record even against Tottenham and Arsenal.

It’s those kinds of displays against the big teams that will make the Red Devils a feared team once more. While I don’t believe they will challenge the top spots, they will give Liverpool and Manchester City something to think about next season. Of course, that all depends on how Ed Woodward approaches the situation.

Should Manchester United consider Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as a contender for the permanent position, or should they allow somebody like Antonio Conte to progress from his work?