STAY HUMBLE ... BE READY TO RUMBLE
Ole urges United to forget all about going top of the table tonight & focus on where they’ll finish in May
OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER has warned his Manchester United players they will come unstuck if they start to believe their own hype.
United will go top of the Premier League by avoiding defeat at Burnley tonight, a position they have not occupied for two- and- a- half years.
That would also see Solskajer’s men go into Sunday’ s top-of-thetable clash at Liverpool ahead of their arch rivals and reigning champions.
But Solskjaer has told his squad the table counts for nothing in January and spelled out that they must remain humble if they want to stay in the title hunt.
“We need to get points against Burnley before anyone can say that you’re top of the table,” said Solskjaer. “But that’s the position we’ve put ourselves in.
“I’d like to think we go into this game not thinking about where we’ll end up tonight in the table, but where we can end up in the table in May.
“So if at one point you think, ‘We’ ve made it now, we’ ve cracked it’ and you relax, that’s when it’s going to hit you back. So we’re very focused. We have some good characters in the team, the dressing room is loud er, it’ s more vocal, with experience. We have more players who can grab the situation.”
The last time United were top was August 10 2018, after a 2- 1 win at home to Leicester in the Premier League’s opening game of that season.
But the last time they were top this far into a season was 2013, when Sir Alex Ferguson l ed United to their most recent league title before stepping down.
Since then, United have flitted between second and seventh, lacking the consistency to challenge for the title, something Solskja er feels is now within their grasp.
“Since Sir Alex left we’ ve been second, third, fourth, fifth, twice sixth and once seventh ,” said Solskjaer.
“When I played it was different, we were really disappointed if we didn’t win the league. Now the league’s different. There are many teams who can look at themselves as candidates to challenge the top teams.”
Despite warning his players about getting ahead of themselves, Solskajer believes they are mentally stronger than at any point in his two years in charge and that he can trust them on and off the pitch.
“I feel the group’s mentality is getting better, so that’s the big thing for me,” said Solskjaer.
“Sometimes results don’t go as expected, but I’ m very happy with where we are mentally at the moment. There’s nothing worse than having your manager or coaches always telling you what to do – this, that and the other.
“I’ ve been lucky enough to have played in a team with loads of characters, where you look after ourselves – inner justice.
“You don’t just let yourself down, you let your team down, so you need leaders thereto grab hold of the ones who stray out of line from what we’ve agreed as a group.
“When you’re part of a team, there’s nothing stronger than being part of a team that keeps together. I’ ve seen teams that have cliques that don’t work together – that’s the killer of a team – so it’s a big, big thing that the group pushes themselves.
“I have a feeling that I can trust them more and more to look after themselves.”