Salah pen riles Gross
LESS than four weeks into one of football management’s more unlikely caretaker roles and the job is already Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s to lose.
Never mind the candidacy of Saint Gareth or the genius of potless Poch, the man who came in from the Molde is the one who will soon have the biggest job in English club football at his mercy.
Six games, six wins and next up in the Premier League are Brighton, Burnley, Leicester and Fulham.
Only two Manchester United managers have won each of their first five league matches – Matt Busby and the man with an almost comical cameo at Cardiff City on his CV.
By the time Liverpool come to town at the end of February, Solskjaer might hold all manner of club records and a permanent residency.
Or as good as.
Ed Woodward and the Glazers will doubtless stick to the plan of waiting until the season’s end to solidify their long-term plans.
But what is becoming crystal clear is that this is one hell of a honeymoon.
This is a guy who is making United look good even when they are getting pummelled, as they were for large sections of a second half dominated by the limbs of David De Gea. Of course, Solskjaer had the fastest footballing reflexes to thank for this victory, not to mention some pretty rotten Tottenham finishing.
Of course, he will know this Spurs team, despite defeat here, is more advanced than the one he has taken over. Of course, he will know that, probably nine times out of 10, his side do not win this game.
But perhaps you could have said that about the 1999 Champions League final. Solskjaer (below) clearly just gets United, from the major to the minor, from the crucial to the cosmetic. On the field, there is a boldness about them that was encapsulated in a first half when Paul Pogba was so willing to join Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and a cleverly-deployed Jesse Lingard as an attacking force.
That Pogba has been liberated by Solskjaer is already a cliche and the debate about whether he was repressed by Mourinho or was a trouble-causing rebel, who should now be shamefaced, is irrelevant.
Four goals and four assists – this one a beauty for Rashford – under the temporary boss, he is now playing like the leader he should be.
And Solskjaer has to take some credit for that, just as he has to take credit for full-backs with more licence and a generally more adventurous approach.
Off the field, when it comes to hitting right notes, the Norwegian is proving a virtuoso. When asked about the title contenders the other day, he said he did not care. Mourinho’s reign ended with him lauding Liverpool.
Here, while acknowledging De Gea’s enormous contribution, he was prickly in pointing out United are allowed to have a good goalkeeper.
Just the right amount of feistiness to go with just the right amount of humility.
And there are the subtler details, the club tie securely knotted up to the buttoned-up collar, even when the reliance on De Gea became desperate. One for maintaining the sartorial standards of a noble institution, Sir Alex Ferguson, up in the Wembley stands, would have approved. Just as Solskjaer’s mentor would have approved of how United have played since Mourinho’s departure. Ferguson might have a say in who gets the gig permanently, he might not. And in defeat, Pochettino’s suitability did not take a knock while Southgate would be a bold choice.
But as he stood smiling in front of serenading supporters, it is already Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s to lose. FROM BACK PAGE
clearly showing he’d pulled the Egypt star’s shirt and kicked him.
Midfielder Gross said: “My first feeling was that he put his arm around me.
“I put my arm around him, but had the feeling I pulled my arm away at the right moment, and he just stopped so that I could fall.”
Gross’s claim is at odds with his own boss Chris Hughton, who cleared Salah of any blame.
The Seagulls manager said: “Mo is probably the best in the country in one-on-one situations, that close to goal, getting it onto his left foot.
“It was hard for Pascal and I apportion no blame. When you’re in that position, you need some help.”