Ole Gunnar Solskjaer & Marcus Rashford address reasons behind Manchester United’s loss of form

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Marcus Rashford have admitted Manchester United’s recent performances ‘haven’t been good enough’ ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League outing against Atalanta.

The Red Devils lost 4-2 against Leicester City at the weekend and suffered bruising defeats to Aston Villa and Young Boys last month, as well as poor showings against Everton and Villarreal.

Speaking in Tuesday’s press conference, Solskjaer said he’s assessed what went wrong against the Foxes and is hoping to put that right when his side face Atalanta.

“As you do after every game, we look through the game, we analyse the game. We look at what we did well and what we didn’t do well, what we need to improve for the next game,” the United boss told reporters.

“But you move on quickly to the next opponent and this is Atalanta which is a different opposition, a different competition. We focus on what we need to be good at this game. As I said, there’s been loads of stuff that hasn’t been good enough lately and we have put a few things right. Hopefully we can see that tomorrow night with a good performance.”

“Too easy” for Leicester

Rashford joined Solskjaer in Tuesday’s press conference and feels the side didn’t defend well enough as a unit at the King Power Stadium. The England international, who scored on his first appearance of the season, said the squad had an open discussion after Saturday’s game, as they tend to after most matches.

“It’s not only after defeats. After some games when you win and you know you haven’t played well, it’s important, if not more important, to have the conversations then,” United’s No.10 explained.

“You want to nip it in the bud as soon as possible, especially in the Premier League, you have to defend well. I don’t just mean the back four and the goalkeeper, as a team you have to defend as one and against Leicester we were too open, it’s as simple as that.

“They’re a good footballing team, as there are a lot of them out there. It was too easy for them to play through us. It’s something we’ve analysed and we’re going to do our best not to let it happen again. The game tomorrow is the first opportunity for us to show us that. We’re fully focused on that.”

“Just to add on that,” Solskjaer chimed in, “I think every coach, every player, every manager, we’re the same. You have to know what you’re doing well as well. You look at things, you make sure you enhance those things as well and try to eradicate the mistakes because if you don’t know what you’re doing well, that’s a mistake in itself.”

Ronaldo’s waning impact

Cristiano Ronaldo’s defensive responsibilities have also come under scrutiny after Saturday’s loss, but Solskjaer was quick to stand up for his player when asked about his input off the ball.

“We have got 11 players out there on the pitch,” the United boss responded. “They have got different roles and responsibilities and we put a team out there that we really thought was going to win that game.

“We didn’t win against Leicester so there is always going to be criticism. Cristano is an absolutely top player and we know what he can do for us. He’s doing everything he can to help the team.”

“It’s not a gimmicky, jovial, happy camp,” Solskjaer added. “They’re focused and determined. You look at yourself and say: ‘What can I do to help the team?’.

“I’ve seen a reaction from the players and probably conceding four goals is a big eye-opener for us that we need to improve on different levels on loads of details.”