Manchester United forwards showed their ‘magic’ against Southampton, says Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
A thumping win for United to send them level on points at the top
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Your support makes all the difference.Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer paid tribute to his forwards for their prowess in front of goal after the 9-0 mauling of Southampton at Old Trafford on Wednesday night.
The Red Devils had a man advantage from as early as the second minute after full debutant Alexandre Jankewitz was sent-off for Saints and a ruthless and clinical attacking display made the away side pay fully for the transgression, even before Jan Bednarek’s late red card took them down to nine men.
Solskjaer said it was important to score the first goal as early as possible after the initial red card, and after that it was about maintaining speed of play and letting the forward players show what they are capable of.
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“When the game starts like it does, it’s always about if you can get the first goal. You’ve seen examples of 10 men and they shut up shop - it’s about keeping the tempo high and get the first one,” the manager told BT Sport at full time.
"We have been waiting for [the forwards] to show their magic and tonight it was about showing it and enjoying it, [there were] some good performances.
“[We can take] lots of confidence from a performance and result like this. Scoring goals is always good for confidence.”
Solskjaer was relieved that the early red card, a knee-high tackle which produced a straight red, only left Scott McTominay with “a couple of bruises”, and reserved praise for his full-backs as well as forward Marcus Rashford.
Luke Shaw claimed two assists despite only playing the first half, while Aaron Wan-Bissaka notched that all-important opener and Rashford’s strike took him past Eric Cantona in goals for the club.
"Aaron kept going at the far post and Luke kept putting crosses in, which we’ve asked him to do. They did well enough, it was about getting good quality from width and we did.
“Eric was a fantastic player to play with and Marcus has a great career ahead. What he’s done this year shows he can focus on his football as well.”
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