OPINION
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hasn’t officially got the Man United job beyond this season yet, but you’d be a brave man to bet against him.
All the signs are pointing to the former United player becoming their next permanent manager, while pundits still queue up to say he must get the role. Andy Cole, former United striker, is the latest.
And it seems like Solskjaer is already planning for life beyond May, with the Sun reporting that he’s planning a triple-swoop on three top English players.
The report states that he wants to build the spine of his United team around home-grown talent, with moves for Jadon Sancho (now at Borussia Dortmund), Declan Rice and one of either Aaron Wan-Bissaka or Harry Maguire, if one of his defenders leaves this summer.
This makes so much sense. The Premier League has welcomed some of the most talented foreign players in the world over the past decade, but England, under Gareth Southgate, is showing that it’s a team for the future.
We still can’t believe that Man City let Sancho go for £7million and we imagine it’s something that they’re regretting now. It would be a rich irony if he turned into a world star at Old Trafford.
Declan Rice is seen as the future of the defensive midfield position, and rivals Man City have had their eye on him too.
Wan-Bissaka has made a name for himself this season at Crystal Palace and a big-money move surely beckons. Maguire is an established England centre-back.
All of these signings make so much sense and will convince Man United fans even more that Solskjaer is the right man for the job.
There’s a nod to the dominant United team of the past when David Beckham, Gary Neville, Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt were central to Alex Ferguson’s success.
And it’s an acknowledgement, along with English dominance in the Champions League this season, that the Premier League is back on top as the best in the world.
Solskjaer’s next job, then? To make United the best of the best. No pressure there.