Manchester United have defied the odds to secure an unlikely 3-1 win against Paris Saint-Germain last night. The Red Devils were on the front foot from the get-go and got an early lead through Romelu Lukaku. It was the Belgian striker who struck again when his team needed him the most at the half-hour mark to help Man United regain their lead. The visitors got a stroke of great fortune in the dying embers of the contest when they were awarded a penalty which Marcus Rashford smashed home from the spot.
It was a miraculous comeback from Ole Gunnar Solkjaer’s men when most pundits didn’t even give them a chance to succeed in Paris. There is no doubt that the United players deserve a lot of credit, but it is their ‘Baby-faced’ Norwegian manager who should get most of the spotlight because of the incredible feat that he has managed to accomplish since his arrival at Old Trafford. He has completely turned the club’s fortunes for the better.
At this moment in time, Solkjaer should be the leading candidate to take over the helms at the red half of Manchester permanently next summer. He has already shown that he can defy expectations during his time as the interim coach. He is the ideal man to get the best out of his players and improve results on the pitch.
Now that Man United are through to the quarter-finals, they would have a great chance to succeed in the competition as quite a few of the heavyweights like Real Madrid, and Borussia Dortmund have already been eliminated in the Round of 16 thus far.
Even if Solkjaer does not manage to win the UEFA Champions League this season, he should be a strong contender to be Man United’s next permanent manager as long as he can deliver a top 4 place at the end of this campaign.
Other than Solkjaer, one can argue that only Mauricio Pochettino and Zinedine Zidane would be worthy contenders to take over as the new head coach of Man United. However, the Norwegian should get the preference over them as the club would then be appointing a coach who has already shown a lot of potential and knows the club inside out from his playing days under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Furthermore, the fact that Man United have lost just once under Solkjaer this season should be proof enough for him to land the job permanently. Hence, the Red Devils are better of giving him the role full-time so that everyone at the club can start concentrating solely on matters on the pitch for the remainder of this campaign.
