Manchester United’s Norwegian manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer looks on during the English FA Cup third round football match between Manchester United and Watford at Old Trafford in Manchester, north west England, on January 9, 2021. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / POOL / AFP) / /
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says there is no chance his players can think they have “cracked it” if Manchester United go top of the Premier League with a positive result against Burnley on Tuesday.
After a truncated pre-season and poor start to the campaign, the Red Devils head to Turf Moor level on 33 points with reigning champions Liverpool.
A draw or a win would lift them above their bitter rivals ahead of Sunday’s mouthwatering trip to Anfield. United have not mounted a sustained Premier League title challenge since Alex Ferguson stepped down in 2013 but Solskjaer is not in the mood for title talk.
“We have to be aggressive,” said the Norwegian, who was part of six Premier League-winning sides during his time as a player at Old Trafford.
“We have to go into every game humble, work hard, don’t even think for one second that you’ve cracked it if you are near the top because that’s not the type of players we have.”
The trip to Burnley will finally see United play the game in hand that has been hanging over them all season after their opener was pushed back to give them time to recover from August’s Europa League finals.
Paul Pogba, Eric Bailly, Luke Shaw and Victor Lindelof could be available after injury, while Edinson Cavani returns from a three-match ban for a social media post that included a racial term.
“Edinson has trained well when he’s been banned,” said the United boss. “He’s had a couple of days off, of course, as well — you can’t train too much.”
United will be juggling Premier League, FA Cup and Europa League exertions over the coming months but Solskjaer is not expecting any more new faces, having wrapped up a deal for Atalanta teenager Amad Diallo.
“I think that the signings we made in the summer strengthened the squad really well,” he said. “Good signings, good characters, good players.
“January’s always difficult but if something comes up that you think about in the long term, it’s a long-term target anyway, that’s another scenario.”
He added: “There might be two or three going out because they deserve to play more football for their own good and their own career.”
