The Warm-Up: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is... The Striker Whisperer
/dnl.tntsports.co.uk/sd/img/placeholder/tnt_logo_1x1.png){kind=logo}
Updated 03/01/2019 at 08:28 GMT
Chelsea show why they need Pulisic, goals galore elsewhere and maybe give the Insta a miss if you've pulled a sickie
Newcastle United v Manchester United – Premier League – St James’ Park
Image credit: PA Sport
THURSDAY’S BIG STORIES
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: striker whisperer
Four games, four wins, and everyone at Manchester United woke up this morning feeling fine. Something tells us they’re onto something good with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and while we’re all waiting for him to manage against a proper team rather than the collection of Premier League dreck he’s faced so far, or for this most romantic of honeymoon periods to be over, he could have a lasting impact even if he only stays a few months.
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2019/01/03/2492672-51752155-2560-1440.jpg)
Manchester United interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer reacts after the final whistle at St James' Park
Image credit: PA Sport
Perhaps it shouldn’t be a surprise that Solskjaer’s arrival has coincided with a remarkable revival in the form of Manchester United’s strikers: Marcus Rashford and Romelu Lukaku scored their goals in the 2-0 win over Newcastle on Wednesday, the third goal in four games for the former, and the latter’s second in just 47 minutes under the Norwegian.
Solskjaer’s good start at United has generally been credited as someone lifting the mood of the place, as if he has simply lit a few scented candles and told everyone some jokes, but he has made some substantive difference. He has spoken a couple of times about improving Lukaku’s positioning and encouraging Rashford to take his time a little more when finishing, both of which have been evident.
If Solskjaer can have a lasting impact on United’s forwards, this whole sentimental exercise will have been worth it.
Chelsea sign Pulisic, can’t beat Southampton
When Chelsea announced the £58 million signing of Christian Pulisic on Wednesday morning, there was some degree of handwringing over the future of youngsters like Callum Hudson-Odoi. And perhaps understandably so, but a few hours later Chelsea provided a demonstration of perhaps why they need someone like Pulisic to give their attack a bit of extra pep.
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2019/01/02/2492636-51751430-2560-1440.jpg)
Maurizio Sarri, Manager of Chelsea looks on from the banch during the Premier League match between Chelsea FC and Southampton FC at Stamford Bridge on January 2, 2019 in London, United Kingdom.
Image credit: Getty Images
The 0-0 draw with Southampton wasn’t in truth a massive surprise: Chelsea have looked sluggish for a while, and while they pull the odd performance out of the bag, injuries are taking their toll and they look like a squad in need of some fresh blood. Alas for them, that blood won’t be arriving until the summer, but better then than never.
“I think we played a very good match for 80 metres of the pitch, then we were in trouble in the last 20 metres,” Maurizio Sarri said after the game. “Of course if you’re able to score the first goal you’re able to create a lot of opportunities, because you can find spaces. We have to try to solve the problem of the last 15, 20 metres. In the last matches we were in full control of the match, everywhere against every team.”
Big game on tonight, in case you didn’t know
Big game. Biiiiiiiiiiiiig ol’ game. By this time tomorrow, you might know who this season’s Premier League champions are. If you had entered into a deep sleep some time in October, was woken up and told this news today, then you’d probably quite reasonably think “Oh, City have really run away with it, eh?”
But no. Should Liverpool beat Manchester City this evening then they will be ten points clear of their rivals and way, way ahead, leaving them in the dust and all set for their first league title in 29 years.
So yeah. Biiiiiiiiiiiig game. Let’s see what the managers have to say.
Jurgen Klopp:
It is one of the most difficult games you can play in the modern football world, away at City. We felt that plenty of times. It’s a really strong team with an outstanding manager. We have to be prepared as good as possible, we have to be brave, full of desire, angry – all that stuff, like in all the other games. The opponent, for me, is still the best team in the world. It’s 100% my opinion because of the way they play, the things they achieved, the ability and all that stuff. Nothing changed. Only the points changed but not the preparation for the game.
…And Pep Guardiola:
I have the feeling it is a big opportunity for us to reduce the gap. My focus is the same. Everybody asking what will happen if you lose, but we are going to try. It is our chance to fight or the Premier League. Last year we beat them 5-0 here. It is Liverpool, the best team in all England in history. We can beat them. I know today nobody trusts us but it is what it is. They are in the moment the best team in Europe, in the consistency, the way they control the details in their game. We are going to focus on what we have to do to win the game. Everyone is talking if we lose, but we can win.
Biiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig game.
IN OTHER NEWS
GOALSGOALSGOALSGOALSGOALSGOALSGOALS
West Ham vs Brighton was shaping up to be a historically bad encounter, 0-0 and grim play all round. And then all hell broke loose, Brighton taking the lead with two goals in two minutes, only for West Ham to equalise…with two goals in two minutes.
Of course that was a snoozefest compared with Bournemouth vs Watford, which saw four goals scored in seven first-half minutes, only for the second-half to deliver precisely zero goals. Still, when a game ends 3-3, you probably can’t complain too much.
HEROES AND ZEROS
Hero: Steve Bruce
Yesterday brought the rather curious news that Steve Bruce had been appointed Sheffield Wednesday manager, but wouldn’t actually be starting work until February. It was initially reported in rather vague terms as a ‘prior personal commitment', but according to some this morning that commitment is heading off to the Caribbean to watch some cricket.
Perhaps some Wednesday fans will be firmly unimpressed, what with them floating around the grim end of the Championship, but we salute this. Too often we think of those involved in football as wed to the game, that nothing else must get in the way. Which is daft. Frankly hats off to Bruce for sticking to his plans: a few weeks in Barbados watching cricket will be more nourishing for him than freezing in Sheffield trying to wrangle a struggling team into mid-table. Well in, Brucey.
Zero: Serdar Aziz
Pulling the wool over your employers’ eyes is getting ever trickier in the social media age, so we do have some sympathy with Galatasaray’s Serdar Aziz after he told his club he couldn’t play in a game due to illness, only for his wife to then post a picture of him enjoying some sun in the Maldives. In fairness both could be true…but maybe keep a lid on that sort of thing next time you throw a sickie.
HAT TIP
Look at the team at the top of the Premier League. Or the team on top of the Bundesliga. Or the England team. Or any England youth teams. Or any youth teams from any of the Premier League’s top sides, not just in London but increasingly in Manchester and Liverpool too. You will see the same stamp: young English players playing with flair, with freedom, showing the skills that they taught themselves and their friends. The football of south London, played for the best teams in the world.
The Independent’s Jack Pitt-Brooke has a look at why south London is producing so many brilliant footballers.
RETRO CORNER
These days Manchester City are a professional, relentless winning machine who leave little to chance. However, back in 1996 they…weren’t. Their game against Liverpool back then was a little different: that time they needed a win to avoid relegation, but thanks to some miscommunication in the last few minutes some of their players believed a draw was enough and started wasting time. They went down, in a calamitous, farcical and…well…very ‘City’ way.
COMING UP
Big game. Biiiiiiiig game. Don’t dare lose this one. Particularly Manchester City. The rest of us are banking on this for a semi-decent title race.
Tomorrow’s Warm-Up will be brought to you by Alex Chick, who will bring you news of the 2018/19 Premier League champions. Possibly.
Related Topics
Share this article