ESPN pundit Craig Burley has shared his thoughts on Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and the “pressure” that he believes is building on him following the Red Devils’ 3-1 loss to Crystal Palace this past weekend in their first game of the 2020/21 Premier League season.
Burley was asked about Solskjaer and how he will fare this season during his recent appearance on ESPN FC’s Extra Time segment and he shared some pessimism over the Norwegian coach’s future.
Here is what the pundit had to say during this ESPN FC segment: “It was one game, they were awful, but the pressure’s on.
“Ed Woodward’s not helping anybody by the slowness of his and the club’s transfer policy in terms of getting deals done, that’s not helping. We can throw Frank Lampard into the same pot, they’re two managers managing big clubs who are going to be under pressure and yeah, he’s going to be under immense pressure this year.
“I’m not going to change my opinion on it, they’re going to have to get a proper, quality coach in if they’re going to challenge Liverpool and [Manchester] City because that’s exactly what they have – top-quality managers.”
Is Solskjaer good enough to challenge for the Premier League title with Manchester United?
YES
NO
TIF Thoughts…
So, as can be seen from what Burley had to say during this ESPN FC segment, it’s clear that he doesn’t believe Solskjaer is a top-quality coach and seems to think that the Red Devils will not be able to challenge the likes of Liverpool and Manchester City for the Premier League title with him at the helm.
This is despite the fact that Solskjaer has come out victorious in three of his five meetings with current Man City manager Pep Guardiola, who Burley deems to be “top-quality.”
Considering that managers with proven track records of success such as Jose Mourinho and Louis van Gaal have also managed United during the past decade and both failed to win the league, perhaps more than just a change in manager will be required for United to challenge the likes of City and Liverpool and more of the “pressure” that Burley talks about should be placed on people occupying other positions in the club.