Clinical Liverpool showed up Manchester United in embarrassing manner - surely this is it for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer?

Manchester United losing 5-0 to Liverpool at Old Trafford was embarrassing in more ways than one. Will Ole Gunnar Solskjaer survive this loss?

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in a file photo; Credit: Twitter/@ManUtd
By Shayne Dias | Oct 25, 2021 | 4 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

On Sunday at Old Trafford, as Manchester United were losing 5-0 to Liverpool, fans began to chant for beleaguered manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. “Ole give us a wave, Ole’s at the wheel, Ole must stay,” came the joyful cries.

However, the chants came from the away section of the ground. Liverpool fans were, by this point, well and truly having a laugh.

And why wouldn’t they be enjoying themselves? They were beating their arch-rivals by five goals to nothing in their backyard. United were down to 10 men thanks to Paul Pogba’s reckless challenge on Naby Keita.

What’s more, there was no chance of a fightback. Liverpool’s ruthlessness and Manchester United’s incompetence had seen to that.

It’s worth remembering that Sir Alex Ferguson, who presided over United’s dominance in the ’90s and 2000s as Liverpool slid further down the table, took great pride in beating Liverpool.

“My greatest challenge was knocking Liverpool right off their f***ing perch. And you can print that,” he once famously told The Guardian.

But here and now, the opposite was and is happening. United are sliding further down the table of relevancy, their last silverware coming in 2017.

Since then, Liverpool have re-established themselves as a force in English football. They’ve won one Champions League and scratched their 30-year domestic title itch.

True, United finished last season in second – ahead of Liverpool and Chelsea. Yet the league position seems almost falsified by Liverpool’s injury issues and Chelsea’s decline towards the end of Frank Lampard’s managerial reign.

Liverpool, with their best players fit and newer players stepping up, look revitalised. Chelsea, while not yet at their best, lead the league table having developed a knack of grinding out results.

United, at present, appear in for a fight to even make the Top 4.

Where did it all go wrong for United?

That United have issues aplenty to deal with is not news at this point. However, it is worth noting that, for all his flaws, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer actually has a decent record against big sides.

This is mainly because, against sides who like to dominate possession, he prefers to sit back and counter-attack. Given United possess plenty of speedy forwards, this is a good tactic to fall back upon.

Which makes it all the more baffling that he chose to go the opposite route.

From the off, it was clear that United were keen to dominate the ball. However, while they do possess silky attackers, one aspect they noticeably lack in is pressing.

Yet, in this match, United did attempt to press Liverpool high up the field. The problem lay in the fact that their pressing was so poor, it didn’t serve its purpose either in offence or defence.

In offence, a high press helps in creating turnovers when the opposition is vulnerable. Defensively, it can negate a possession-based gameplan by cutting out passing lanes and making it hard to play through the lines.

However, due to the fact that United did not press with enough intensity or cohesion, they were left exposed. Liverpool’s defence and midfield were under no pressure when United belatedly attempted to press.

What’s worse, United’s utter lack of shape and cohesion meant that, when they pressed, they actually became easier to play against. Due to a lopsided formation, there were no actual lines for Liverpool’s players to play through.

The defence, offered little protection from midfield, fell apart. And Liverpool’s front line – led by the imperious Mohamed Salah – needed no second invitation to take their chances.

In short, the blame lies soley at the door of the manager.

Is there any way back for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer?

Which brings us back to Solskjaer – and the uncomfortable questions about his lack of suitability to the job are beginning to creep up again.

To be fair, this isn’t anything new. Many felt the 6-1 loss to Tottenham Hotspur last year would have signalled the end of the Norwegian’s reign. But this loss feels different.

That 6-1 defeat came largely due to the fact that United were reduced to 10 men in the first half itself. By contrast, this loss saw them concede 5 goals before Pogba’s sending off.

In fact, Liverpool took their foot off the pedal once the red card was brandished. Mindful perhaps that a frustrated United side were throwing themselves into challenges, they took the edge out of the game with some standard passing between defence and midfield.

Solskjaer would describe the defeat as his ‘darkest day’, but many are now wondering if this will be his last day in the job. It is worth noting that Solskjaer’s predecessor Jose Mourinho also lost his job after a loss to Liverpool.

Will it be deja vu all over again for another United manager? So far, there’s no indication of that being the case. But this is Manchester United, after all.

The likes of David Moyes, Louis van Gaal and even Mourinho were sacked well after it became obvious the team was in a downward spiral. And it appears to be no different this time around.

Perhaps the worst part for Solskjaer is that there is likely to be no respite. They next face Tottenham Hotspur before traveling to Bergamo to face Atalanta in the Champions League. After that? They host Manchester City, noisy neighbours and defending champions.

In short, the Solskjaer experiment might not yet be over at United. But the clock is ticking on his reign.





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