Beckham: Fan-tastic Ole’s man for the job

DAVID BECKHAM believes fan power and the support of former manager Sir Alex Ferguson will help Ole Gunnar Solskjaer land the full-time job at Old Trafford and propel Manchester United to more glory.

Beckham and Solskjaer won five Premier League titles, two FA Cups and a Champions League crown during their time together at United.

And the former England captain,

43, is delighted to see how well his friend has done since replacing Jose Mourinho as manager in December.

Speaking to reporters in Miami, where he is president of new Major League Soccer team Inter Miami, Beckham revealed the Norwegian’s success has not surprised him.

“Seeing Ole do so well, it’s obviously great to see, especially as a fan,” said Beckham (above).

“But as a friend and a former team-mate, to see someone who knows and understands the club come in and do as well as he has done has been great.

“I’m not surprised. We had great players, talent and infrastructure at the club – everything Manchester United is all about.”

Many supporters had started to wonder about that during the final joyless months of Mourinho’s reign but Solskjaer has brought the smiles back.

Prior to yesterday’s FA Cup Quarter-Final against Wolves, Solskjaer’s United had lost just twice in 18 games – to Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain, avenging the latter in stunning fashion by winning the return leg to reach the last eight of the Champions League.

They will now meet Barcelona in the Quarter-Finals, which means the

46-year-old will return to the scene of his most famous moment in a United shirt when he scored the stoppage-time winner to beat Bayern Munich in the 1999 final of Europe’s elite competition.

It was confirmed last week that Beckham, who helped create that winning goal with a trademark dead-ball delivery, will play in a game to mark the 20th anniversary of that night at Old Trafford on May 26.

And he added: “Ole gains respect from the players because he has done it. Having the support of ‘The Boss’ has also helped him.”

Things have gone so well for Solskjaer it is easy to forget he is still officially only a temporary solution and is meant to be returning to his full-time job as Norwegian side Molde’s manager in May.

Asked if he thought there was any way that would be allowed to happen now, Beckham said: “That’s not down to me but look at the fans. They’ve loved it and they want it to continue.”