The two Man City stars Solskjaer told his Man Utd side to target at the Etihad

With the spectre of Mauricio Pochettino hanging over him, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer knew he faced the most defining week of his Manchester United reign as he closed in on the one-year anniversary of his return.

His side’s 2-2 draw with Aston Villa last week left the Red Devils eight points adrift in the race for the top four and the calls to appoint the Argentine increased, even from those who have loyally stood by Solskjaer during the club’s worst start to a season since the 1989/90 campaign.

With games against Tottenham and Manchester City on the horizon, it was always going to be a pivotal four days in the Norwegian’s time at the club but few could have expected his United side to come through it in manner they did.

Jose Mourinho’s return to Old Trafford threatened to expose Solskjaer for what many claim him to be; an out-of-his-depth manager with little more than the goodwill of a fanbase indebted to him for his legendary status at the club. That accusation has been thrown at Solskjaer after every bad result but the reality is that he’s outwitted some of the game’s best managers during his 12 months at Old Trafford and Mourinho was added to the list.

United’s 2-1 win against Spurs was arguably the best performance under Solskjaer since he permanently took over. His side had at last combined purposeful, counter-attacking play with defensive solidity and they would have kept a clean sheet had it not been for a wonder goal from Dele Alli. That United were able to raise their game against a top six rival, especially one with Mourinho now at the helm, was no surprise. Solskjaer’s record against the top six since he’s arrived at the club is outstanding and only Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola have bettered it in that time.

Solskjaer's record against the top six

Tottenham 0-1 Manchester United | PL
Manchester United 0-0 Liverpool | PL
Chelsea 0-2 Manchester United | FA Cup
Arsenal 1-3 Manchester United | FA Cup
Arsenal 2-0 Manchester United | PL
Manchester United 0-2 Manchester City | PL
Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea | PL
Manchester United 4-0 Chelsea | PL
Manchester United 1-1 Arsenal | PL
Chelsea 1-2 Manchester United | EFL
Manchester United 1-1 Liverpool | PL
Manchester United 2-1 Tottenham | PL
Manchester City 1-2 Manchester United| PL

But few could have foreseen the result at the Etihad, nevermind the nature of it. For 45 minutes, United dominated City like no side has managed in their own backyard since Pep Guardiola took over the reins. City had lost just four league games at home under the Spaniard before Saturday’s defeat and while the likes of Chelsea and previous United sides had come away with victories, nobody has made the champions look as ordinary as Solskjaer’s men did during that first half.

City, inevitably, came back into it after the interval and they dominated the ball without creating many clear chances. Nicolas Otamendi’s late goal halved the deficit and David De Gea had to be at his best to deny Riyad Mahrez from salvaging a point for City.

But the damage had already been done during an electrifying first half in which Solskjaer quashed any doubts that he can compete with the best managers in the league. United created chances at will, cutting through City’s midfield and getting the ball into a fluid, rapid front four of Jesse Lingard, Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Daniel James. Solskjaer reverted to a back three with great success against Liverpool earlier this season and the expectation was that he would do so again at the Etihad. His side are no match for City in possession, that is clear, so it made sense to condense space at the back while allowing the likes of Rashford and James to stay high against a makeshift City backline.

But Solskjaer rolled the dice in opting for a 4-2-3-1 system and Metro.co.uk can reveal his tactics hinged on the inclusion of Angelino at left-back. United’s backroom staff studied City’s performances against the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool earlier this season to explore the few weaknesses within Guardiola’s set-up. They reported back to Solskjaer that they had noted a lack of desire in Raheem Sterling when City are out of possession. While the forward is happy to press when the opposition have the ball, United felt Sterling was far less willing to match runs beyond him and this could in turn lead to the isolation of left-back Angelino. The squad were shown stills of Sterling’s positioning in City’s win against Chelsea in November in which the Blues caused Guardiola’s men a worrying amount of problems and they were told to exploit the gaps behind the forward and his full-back as he often ‘stands and watches’ once he enters his own half.

The below was within the first 92 seconds at the Etihad and it perfectly summarises United’s tactics during the first half. Victor Lindelof, who is picked ahead of Axel Tuanzebe because of his composure in possession, would usually seek a pass out to his full-back or into one of the two deep-lying midfielders. Instead, he floats a ball into Lingard, who has time and space to find Rashford free on the left flank.  Suddenly, due to Lindelof’s choice of direct pass, United find themselves in a 5vs4 attack.

Out on the far right, James can be seen completely isolated against Angelino. That’s not unexpected given the speed of United’s attack but there’s close to forty yards between Sterling and his left-back; a distance he failed to close as United built up the attack. Martial is played down the line and he cuts the ball back to Fred. The Brazilian’s heavy touch gives him little option but to play it wide to James and the Welshman gets a decent effort away at Ederson. While the move is by no means Sterling’s fault, it demonstrates United’s belief that City could be vulnerable in quick transitions.

Guardiola had Angelino, the fit-again Oleksandr Zinchenko or Benjamin Mendy to choose from at left-back. As is the threat with any Guardiola team, City often ringfence opponents with constant overlapping from the full-backs that sees the likes of Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva come inside from the flanks to outnumber opposing midfields. United believed Angelino would get the nod and based their tactics on isolating the Spaniard. Martial was asked to play closer to James on the right flank in order to double up on Angelino, which would prevent the defender from providing more support in attacking areas.  Should United prevent Angelino from getting forward, they felt they could create two-on-one situations down City’s left due to Sterling’s unwillingness to track back.

United continued to knock at City’s door and they were presented with another opening after 16 minutes. Fred, ignoring a simple five-yard pass into Lingard, opts for a difficult, risky route into Rashford, who is stood on the last line of defence. His gamble pays off as the crispness of the pass means Rashford can take the ball instantly. As he looks up, he sees both Martial and James doubling up on Angelino’s side.

The ball is played through the lines to the Welshman and his rapid pace means Angelino cannot engage him as he’s entered the box. It’s here that the Spaniard is crying out for help from his midfield but again, Sterling is nowhere to be seen. Though Martial fails to convert the chance, he has far too much time to get an effort in at goal and the Frenchman of course made amends later on in the half.

With City expected to dominate possession, the speed of United’s transitions would prove vital and Solskjaer instructed his side to avoid sideway passes in their own half in favour of balls ‘straight through the middle’ into Martial, Rashford and James.

The tactics worked even better than Solskjaer could have hoped in the first half and their two-goal lead at the interval was nothing more than they deserved against a City side that looked shell-shocked. While the victories will not end the calls for Pochettino, they will at least keep them at bay for the time being. It’s further proof that Solskjaer can compete at this level and is not quite the novice some like to paint him to be. During the darkest days in October after defeats to Newcastle and West Ham, the club insisted that Solskjaer was paying the price of a depleted squad and that, should he be able to pick a starting XI that resembled the one that beat Chelsea 4-0 on the opening weekend of the season, United would climb the table. Saturday’s win was arguably United’s strongest XI, barring the absence of Paul Pogba.

More wins like the two he’s produced in the last week and Solskjaer may be around for longer than expected.