Man United ‘on right track’ as they hunt UCL spot
MANCHESTER: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said yesterday his Manchester United side are “getting closer” to the standards demanded at Old Trafford as they focus on reaching the Champions League.
United conceded a late goal against Southampton on Monday to draw 2-2, ending a run of four straight Premier League wins.
Forwards Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial scored for the Red Devils.
The result left Solskjaer’s men in fifth place in the table but they are assured of a top-four finish if they win their remaining games against Crystal Palace, West Ham and fellow Champions League hopefuls Leicester.
The Norwegian boss said his message to his players ahead of today’s trip to Crystal Palace was to keep on doing what they had been doing and “trust yourselves”.
“You’re at a club where it always boils down to the last couple of weeks, or two or three games in the season anyway,” he said at his pre-match press conference yesterday.
“We’ve done fantastic since we restarted. We started with the draw against Tottenham of course but then had a great run. That little bit of a setback is a test for mentalities.”
Asked if this was the best Manchester United team since Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, Solskjaer said: “I don’t think that’s my job to say... but of course we’ve played some good football, some enjoyable football.
“Now it is about consistency. We know we’re privileged to play for this great club and represent this great club and there’s a certain expectation on how we should play football and we’re getting closer and closer to that type of team.”
Solskjaer said his team, unbeaten in 18 matches in all competitions, had made major strides during the 2019/20 campaign.
“We’ve come a long way in this season,” he said. “I think we’ve hurried this process up by quite a distance with what we’ve done since we started this season.”
United will also face Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-finals on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Rashford, 22, is to become the youngest person to receive an honorary doctorate from the University of Manchester for his work campaigning against child poverty and his sporting achievements.
TRANSFER WINDOW
Premier League clubs have agreed a 10-week summer transfer window, which will open on July 27. Subject to the approval of Fifa, the window will open the day after the 2019/20 league season finishes and end on Oct 5, the date Uefa had recommended for the closure of registration periods across Europe.
RESULT
Chelsea 1 (Giroud 45+3) Norwich 0
FIXTURES
(kick-offs Thai time)
Today
Everton v Aston Villa, Leicester v Sheffield United (both midnight), Southampton v Brighton, Crystal Palace v Manchester United (both 2.15am, Fri) Tomorrow
West Ham v Watford (2am, Sat)