Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has spoken for the first time after being fired from the Manchester United managerial role on Sunday, 21 November 2021.
Despite heated and almost violent calls by fans for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to be axed from the managerial position, there has been an outpouring of goodwill towards the Norwegian manager on social media.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took charge of the club in the 2018/19 season, stabled a sinking ship and turned the club into a fearsome team. But in the latter days of his time as manager, the team looked out of its depth against teams they would usually run over and teams they would usually have a fierce battle with.
The Norwegian sat down with MUTV for an emotional final interview, where he spoke on his time at the club, his hopes for the future of the club and his plans for his future.
“[I’m] Very, very proud [of my time at the club],” Solskjaer said to MUTV. “Of course, it’s one of those things you dream of in your life. When you’ve been a player, when you’ve been a reserve team coach, the next job then, the only dream and the only thing you haven’t done is to manage the club, and I have now.”
Solskjaer promises to back the new manager
“I don’t want to pre-empt anything but the two times I’ve left Molde, they’ve won the league the year after, so all the best to whoever takes over – that’s the expectation!” Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said after expressing his gratitude for the time he spent as head coach.
He also promised to throw his weight behind whoever replaces him as the boss and also come back if he’s needed. “I’ll spend some time with my family [in Norway],” the Norwegian says. “Then, I’ll watch the team of course and hopefully, the next manager comes in and I want to support him. I want him to be successful, hopefully, I’ve laid the foundations for that to happen,” he added.
Four new big names lined up as potential Solskjaer replacements
Before Manchester United and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer parted ways, there have been a ton of rumours as to who could replace the 48-year-old as Manchester United manager.
Sky Sports reports that former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino is the club management’s preferred candidate. Per Sky Sports, Ajax’s Erik Ten Hag is the second choice if Pochettino cannot be convinced to leave his current position at PSG.
Other names that have been mentioned in relation to the Manchester United job are Zinedine Zidane, Brendan Rodgers, and Ralf Rangnick. Other names that have come up since the sacking of Solskjaer are Sevilla’s Julen Lopetegui, Brighton and Hove Albion’s Graham Potter, Al Rayyan of Qatar’s Laurent Blanc, and Spain’s Luis Enrique.
However, Micheal Carrick, once part of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s coaching staff in his time at the club, will train the team until the club’s management decide on a replacement for the Norwegian.