After a dismal start to the 2018-19 campaign, Manchester United sacked Jose Mourinho in December and appointed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as the interim manager till the end of the season.
Till the time, he got sacked, Jose complained about the lack of quality defenders and questioned some of the players’ attitude towards the game. His fallout with Paul Pogba became the talk of the town with both reportedly didn’t see eye to eye during Mourinho’s last few days at United.
Those players who suffered under Jose Mourinho, are now gradually proving their worth at Manchester United. The Norwegian, being a former United player himself, has instilled the value of the jersey among the players who are desperate for success under the interim boss.
Hence without much ado, let’s look at the three players who are loving life under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
#3 Antony Martial
Antony Martial would probably be the first of many players who had a problem with Jose Mourinho. The Frenchman broke into the scene under Louis Van Gaal and immediately became a sensation scoring in his Old Trafford debut against Liverpool in front of the Stretford End. Martial was United’s top scorer during the 2015-16 season.
However, things started degrading once Jose took charge at Old Trafford. The Portuguese always preferred wingers who track back and does the defensive duties diligently. Antony didn’t like defending against the wingers which eventually bought about his dismissal from the starting line up.
The arrival of Sanchez further worsened Martial’s situation who wanted to leave Manchester United to revive his career somewhere else. Solskjaer allowed Martial to play in his preferred left wing position without worrying much about tracking back to stop the opposition full backs. Antony has looked more menacing in the last few games and even scored Manchester United’s Goal of the Month for December.
#2 Marcus Rashford
Marcus Rashford’s name would not come in the list of players who fell out with Jose Mourinho at Manchester United. However, the England International would be pleased with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s appointment which gave him the opportunity to play as a center forward at United.
Rashford is one of the few players who scored both in his Europea League and Premier League debut for Manchester United. It was a blessing in disguise for Louis Van Gaal who gave Marcus an opportunity after Martial got injured before the Europa League clash. Since then, he has only moved up the ladder securing the No 10 jersey before the start of the current campaign.
However, under Mourinho, Marcus didn’t get that many games, he would have hoped. Even most of the times, he played as a right winger to adjust Sanchez or Martial down the left flank. Solskjaer made sure Rashford plays upfront with Martial and Lingard as the preferred wingers. It has helped the forward wreck havoc in the opposition box with his pace, skill, and finishing.
#1 Paul Pogba
No player would be more delighted to see the back of Jose Mourinho than Paul Pogba. The Frenchman was Mourinho’s one of the four signings in his debut season at Manchester United. Paul became United’s costliest player ever after a record transfer fee lured Juventus to sell the midfielder to the Red Devils.
Since his arrival, it has been a patchy ride for Pogba who didn’t like Mourinho’s style of play. There was even a training ground bust-up between the two which further worsened their relationship, and Pogba eventually lost his place in the side.
The Frenchman played further up the pitch under Ole, cherishing the role of an attacking midfielder and displaying every trick he has in the locker. Pogba is Manchester United’s most talented player, and if he performs at the highest level, the red half of Manchester will become serious title contenders in the future.
