Solskjaer not worried by fixture congestion

Manchester United caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insists he is not worried about fixture congestion ahead of two games in the space of five days.

The in-form Reds are in Emirates FA Cup action at Arsenal on Friday night before the focus will shift to the home clash against Burnley in the Premier League on Tuesday evening.

Although it seems inevitable some will deem a draw, and replay, against the Gunners as the ‘worst possible result’ for both clubs, the Norwegian appears unfazed by any prospect of the games starting to pile up.

Ole’s men resume the UEFA Champions League campaign with the home encounter with Paris Saint-Germain on 12 February, while progress for either, or both of, United and Manchester City to the sixth round of the FA Cup will mean the derby, currently scheduled for 16 March, will be postponed.

None of the upcoming matters appear to be troubling Solskjaer, who is merely focused on the job in hand. “It [the Burnley game] is not straight after [Arsenal],” he said at his press conference ahead of the trip to London. “We’ve got plenty of time.

”You don't really have to prioritise [anything] when I have a big squad anyway so, of course, there will be one or two changes [at the Emirates Stadium], but it's not like you prioritise one ahead of the other. You always prioritise the next game. So, now the main priority is tomorrow night and then we've got Saturday, Sunday, Monday. Still three days in between, so plenty of time to recover for Burnley.”

Sean Dyche’s Clarets are also involved in the FA Cup fourth round, meeting Manchester City on Saturday, and the match is the last of the month for the Reds. In February, we have a minimum of five fixtures – against Leicester City, Fulham, PSG, Liverpool and Crystal Palace, and a maximum of seven depending on the FA Cup permutations.