Gary Neville has told Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to have a ‘ruthless streak’ like Jose Mourinho and be ‘selfish’ with Manchester United’s money in the January transfer window.
Solskjaer is under serious pressure after United’s dismal start to the season, with the team languishing down in ninth place in the Premier League with only four wins from 13 games.
The Red Devils appeared on course for another defeat at Sheffield United on Sunday afternoon before Solskjaer’s players produced a spirited second-half fightback to salvage a 3-3 draw.
According to reports, Mauricio Pochettino and Massimiliano Allegri are both on United’s radar as potential replacements for Solskjaer, but Neville believes his former club must stick with the Norwegian for the time being.
And he’s told Solskjaer to ‘demand’ financial support from the board to sign experienced players in the coming window in order to save himself from the sack.
‘Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has to go and spend the club’s money in January for himself. He has to go and spend the club’s money on two or three experienced players – he must demand it!’ Neville said on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football.
‘Those young lads, he’s not gonna be there to see the fruits of the labour that he’s putting in, the foundations that he’s laying because there’s a lot of good young players out on that pitch.
‘But unless they get the players in and around them quickly, they’ll not see the standard and they won’t have the maturity.
‘It was the most predictable thing in the world… Pochettino gets sacked in the week [and he’s linked with United]
‘I personally, two and a half years ago when Louis van Gaal was sacked, said I thought Pochettino should be appointed before Jose Mourinho so I can’t sit here now and say he wouldn’t be the right person for the football club.
‘But Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s been appointed eight months ago, the club have taken a different track. I like a lot of those young players but Ole’s gonna have to be selfish. He’s gonna have to have that ruthless streak that a Mourinho or Conte has and spend the club’s money to protect himself in the January window.
‘Put two or three experienced players in amongst that group and they could come alive.’
Neville was damning with his assessment of United’s performance at Sheffield United and ripped into the midfield combination of Fred and Andreas Pereira.
‘I think, defensively, the system didnt work in terms of the back-five in the first half. The other team looked like they knew how to play it and one team didn’t,’ the former right-back said.
‘The midfield I’m not going to go into because that’s not a midfield. Fred and Pereira is not a midfield for a mid-table club, let alone one of the top spending clubs in Europe.
‘They have got injury problems and other issues in midfield
‘What disappointed me most was the lack of penetration, runs with and without the ball from the front three. I just felt they could have done a lot more for the team.’
