Solskjaer: Man Utd need to start 1-0 down!

Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer joked he has written to the Premier League to ask them if his team can start matches 1-0 down.

United have come from behind to claim points in top-flight matches against Southampton and West Ham this season and also made a habit of launching comebacks in the 2020-21 campaign.

But they could not recover from a slow start on Wednesday as they suffered a 1-0 defeat to West Ham in the EFL Cup, with Solskjaer critical of how his team began the game.

Ahead of Saturday’s key home clash against Aston Villa, the United boss knows the trend has to change.

“We need to start games better of course,” he said.

“I’ve sent a letter to the Premier League asking if we can start games 1-0 down, it’ll make things so much easier for us!

“Joking apart, it’s a big, big part of the game and we need to start better, we can’t expect to come back and win games as we have done fantastically in the last 12, 14, 15 months but it’s going to catch up with us.

“It’s been looked at and talked about and hopefully we can see a response.”

 

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) September 25, 2021

Despite their cup disappointment, United are joint top of the Premier League with 13 points from five matches.

United have won 18 of their last 21 home league games against Villa (D2 L1), failing to score on just one occasion in that run, with star forward Cristiano Ronaldo expected to return to the team after being rested against West Ham.

Solskjaer said ahead of the match at Old Trafford that he believes the Portugal forward is capable of playing into his 40s due to his supreme physical conditioning.

Villa have earned just one win in their last 45 Premier League games against the Red Devils, racking up an astonishing 33 defeats in that span.

The visitors have also lost both of their Premier League away games this season, conceding three goals in each defeat, but did thump Everton 3-0 at home in their last top-flight outing.