Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has discussed the area Manchester United need to ‘be better’ and has bemoaned the fixture scheduling ahead of tomorrow’s clash with Everton.
United face Everton in the Premier League on Saturday lunchtime, looking to bounce back from last weekend’s disappointing home defeat to Aston Villa.
Solskjaer’s side are fourth in the division and just one point adrift of the league leaders, but have struggled for consistency in their performances across all competitions this season.
United do however seemingly have a weakness at the back against the counter attack, with West Ham, Aston Villa and Villarreal all having looked to expose the Red Devils on the break in recent games.
Weekend opponents Everton have been threatening on the counter so far this season through summer signings Andros Townsend and Demarai Gray, and United boss Solskjaer says his side ‘have got to get better’ at defending against it.
“That is the challenge that we are facing more and more. We have got to be better at,” he said at his pre-match press conference.
“We want to be in the position that teams pay us such respect. There are so many things that you’ve got to do right.
“The ball moves so rapidly up the pitch and it sometimes looks like a handball game! The Aston Villa game had 45 minutes effective playing time which is lowest I’ve seen of us.”
Solskjaer also criticised the scheduling of the fixture, with tomorrow’s lunchtime kick-off coming after a midweek Champions League fixture against Villarreal.
The Norwegian questioned the ‘common sense’ behind Liverpool against Manchester City being scheduled for Sunday, given both sides having featured on Tuesday in the Champions League.
“We had no explanation, but it’s TV of course,” Solskjaer said.
“No common sense at all, we had the same scenario last year when we played in Turkey and then Everton.
“We have to make it happen. It is not like we did it last year so it is going to happen again.
“Us and Chelsea played Wednesday and Liverpool vs City should have been the Saturday one. Common sense isn’t so common.”
