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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has given the Manchester United hierarchy until next summer to get rid of the club’s unwanted players, according to the Manchester Evening News.
What’s the word?
After seemingly achieving messianic status with a stunning first two months as United manager, the wheels began to fall off for Solskjaer as the Red Devils slumped to a sixth-place finish amid a shambolic end to the season.
Filled with ageing stars on lucrative contracts, the Norwegian manager is hoping to overhaul the United squad and has already given Ed Woodward a list of players who don’t fit into his plans.
However, the former United striker has given his club until next summer to offload the players, understanding that it may be unfeasible to completely overhaul the squad in just one transfer window.
Long-term planning, finally
United fans should be jumping up and down rejoicing at this news. While it isn’t a marquee signing or even an actual sale, this report shows a potential change of direction that should alter United for the better.
The reality of the task facing Solskjaer is that the squad is too big and filled with expensive and ageing stars to fully overhaul in one summer. However, the mark of a well-run football club is long-term thinking coupled with early business – they’ve already agreed personal terms with Daniel James.
This is the mantra that Manchester City religiously utilise but seems to have evaded United in the post-Alex Ferguson era with no long-term planning particularly evident.
The main reason why it is unlikely that United will be able to sell all their unwanted players this summer is due to a lack of long-term thinking, but this new two-summer plan gives enough time to believe that the business could realistically be concluded by next summer.
In addition, the long-term plan implies that the club sees Solskjaer as their manager for the foreseeable future. Regardless of whether or not the 1999 Champions League hero ends up being the heir to Ferguson, stability is desperately needed at Old Trafford and giving Solskjaer extended time and control over the squad should help achieve this.
United’s random and seemingly disorganised approach to the transfer market could finally be coming to an end with long-term planning under a trusted manager the new modus operandi in the red half of Manchester.