Solskjaer’s failure to rotate angers players
⮞united
squad members feel misled over first-team chances ⮞manager has stuck with same group despite team’s poor form
A number of Manchester United’s fringe players feel misled about their first-team prospects this season, as frustration grows at Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s reluctance to rotate despite a dire run that has left his future in the balance.
Solskjaer was determined to carry a big squad into this season and felt it would be vital to United’s hopes of competing on all fronts after the manager admitted he had probably “overplayed” some players, including Bruno Fernandes, last term.
Donny van de Beek, Jesse Lingard, Dean Henderson, Eric Bailly, Alex Telles, Diogo Dalot, Juan Mata and Anthony Martial all went into this season expecting to play more.
Yet despite six defeats in the past 12 matches, including humiliations by rivals Liverpool and Manchester City, Solskjaer has remained loyal to largely the same group of players.
It is a situation that has caused mounting frustration among members of the squad, particularly those who backed away from potential transfers in the summer in the belief that they would play more.
Watford away on Saturday marks the start of five games in 15 days as
Solskjaer – whose team have taken four points from the past 18 on offer in the league – fights to save his job.
Van de Beek (below), who has started just four Premier League games since signing from Ajax for £40million in September last year, has played only 15 minutes in the league this season.
Lingard has yet to start a league game, despite scoring twice off the bench, and has rebuffed attempts to tie him down to a new deal. He is out of contract at the end of the season. As with Van de Beek, he is attracting interest from a number of clubs and his continued omission is a source of bemusement among team-mates.
Bailly had made only one appearance, in the League Cup in September, before being thrown in against Atalanta early this month due to injuries to fellow centre-backs Raphael Varane and Victor Lindelof.
Telles appeared to hint at his frustration in a cryptic Instagram post before the win at Tottenham Hotspur last month and Mata’s only appearance this term was in the League Cup. Dalot has yet to start a league game and Martial has started just twice in the top flight and fallen behind Cristiano Ronaldo, Marcus Rashford, Edinson Cavani, Mason Greenwood and Jadon Sancho in the pecking order.
Henderson’s hopes of usurping David de Gea as No1 suffered a setback when he was struck down by coronavirus and the Spaniard’s fine form has meant he has had to settle for a place on the bench. It is understood the England goalkeeper will look to leave at the end of the season if the outlook has not improved.
United said yesterday they were in “advanced talks” with the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust about the creation of a new fans’ share scheme that would allow supporters to build an ownership stake in the club. It would involve creating a new share that would carry the same high voting rights as those held by the Glazers. A fans’ advisory board is also close to being launched as a new channel for board-level dialogue with supporters.