After a third-place finish in the Premier League was clinched with a 2-0 win over Leicester City, Solskjaer would have been forgiven for feeling rather smug.
Over the course of his tenure as Manchester United manager, pundits and fans alike have doubted the Norwegian. He was out of his depth, many said.
Ole is not perfect, far from it. But he is a man with a plan, something which United have sorely lacked since the days of Sir Alex Ferguson.
Phase one of that plan has been achieved: United will be back in the Champions League next season. Now it’s time to move onto phase two: re-establishing United as a genuine Premier League title challenger.
In order to do that, Ole must add a little more stardust to his side. “The club knows what I feel we need and we’re going to try to pursue it,” he said after that win at Leicester. “Let’s see where we end up.”
What Solskjaer feels United need is something of an open secret. MEN Sport understands Borussia Dortmund star Jadon Sancho is the club’s priority and there is also interest in Aston Villa talisman Jack Grealish.
Neither will come cheap, however. A club-record fee will be required to bring Sancho to Old Trafford while Villa are under no pressure to sell after they survived relegation to the Championship.
United have the financial clout, despite the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, to complete both deals. Yet if the two players were to arrive this summer, they would likely play very different roles in Solskjaer’s squad.
Sancho would be an all-star signing. Still only 20 years old, the England international is one of the most consistent and devastating wingers in Europe.
In the Bundesliga last season, Sancho struck 17 goals and claimed a further 16 assists. The latter was at a rate of 0.6 per 90, the second-most of any player in Europe’s top-five leagues.
Sancho achieved those numbers playing predominantly off the right flank, although he can impact games from the left or more centrally.
Mason Greenwood featured regularly on the right of the United attack after the Premier League’s restart and produced a series of impressive and decisive performances.
Yet he would almost certainly make way for Sancho, especially as the 18-year-old has been tipped to become the “complete No.9” in the future by Solskjaer.
