CULTURE CLUB

Solskjaer insists: United must get its DNA back... and if players don’t fit in, they’ll go

OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER believes Manchester United have lost their identity.

The United boss reckons the Reds have been paying a heavy price in the six years since Sir Alex Ferguson retired because David Moyes, Louis van Gaal and Jose Mourinho all failed to build on the philosophy laid down by the club’s greatest-ever manager.

Solskjaer has warned that bringing back the glory years to Old Trafford is going to be a long and painful process that will eat into the three-year contract he signed last month.

But he feels that it’s vital United rebuild both the squad and their culture without resorting to an expensive, short-term fix.

Solskjaer said: “When I came in, there was an understanding that we had to get Man United’s DNA back into the club, the team and the players.

“We need to get a culture back. What’s the definition of culture? I’d say it’s about how we do things here.

“I have my way of doing things – but I do expect them to be done.

“That might mean small things like having breakfast or lunch together.

“But I also like my players to take ownership of their own careers and their own futures. “That’s the type of player I like – and I have been impressed by many of the players we have got here. Not all of them, but a lot of them.”

United have spent £600million in the transfer market since Ferguson retired.

But they have yet to win the title since he delivered Premier League No.13 before moving into the boardroom.

United now go into a crucial week that will decide whether they will return to the Champions League next season.

They meet Everton at Goodison Park today and then face neighbours Manchester City in the derby at Old Trafford on Wednesday night before a home game against Chelsea on Sunday. Solskjaer said: “I don’t know the reason we have signed most of the players who are here, but I do know that they were brought here because they have great quality and previous managers have seen that.

“But I look for different things than Van Gaal did, than Moyes did, than Jose did.

“I fancy different types of players – that’s just the way it is in football.

“It’s not a question of whether I like this player or that player. The question I ask is if they fit into Man United and the style I want this club to play.

“These players have had Mourinho, Louis van Gaal, Ferguson, Moyes.

“But now I am new and I want us to play in different way.”

Ferguson was instrumental in bringing Solskjaer back to Old Trafford, first as temporary manager when Mourinho was sacked in December.

The appointment was made permanent after a revival that peaked with the epic Champions League win at Paris Saint-Germain.

But while Solskjaer wants a return to the basic principles instilled by Fergie, he insists there is nothing retro about his methods. He added: “We cannot live in the past. I’m not trying to make things like they once were – because the world changes and football changes.

“You can’t tell players to do all the same things we did when I played. That would be naive.

“But there were certain things we did when I was a player – and that’s what I am talking about in terms of culture.

“I’m talking about how the manager trusted us. About how we had to take ownership as a group and as a team.

“He trusted us and, if you stepped out of bounds, then it was unfortunate for you that you wouldn’t stay here long.

“That’s the way it has to be at a club like this.”