SOLSKJAER EXCLUSIVE: THIS TEAM NEEDS A TROPHY!

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer cannot wait for the resumption of Manchester United’s FA Cup campaign this weekend, with the Reds set to take on Norwich in a quarter-final clash on Saturday (17:30 BST kick-off).

The manager was in high spirits as he sat down to talk to us following a convincing 3-0 win over Sheffield United at Old Trafford last Wednesday, but he wants his squad to quickly move on, and was keen to stress how much preparation had gone into this weekend’s trip to Carrow Road.

We asked the Treble hero about what changes, if any, he will make to the starting XI, how important silverware could be to his improving team’s development, and how the coaching staff have worked with United’s front three to help them become more “greedy”.

It’s all here in our exclusive Q&A. Read on to hear everything the manager had to say…

First of all, Ole, the lads looked in great form on Wednesday. I suppose you've now got a lovely selection dilemma for the weekend?
“Well, first of all, I don't think that performance is making it more difficult. It's the situation we're in, and circumstances. Of course, we're playing so many games in a short space of time, and it's great seeing the players being in form. I know that we've got so many others wanting to play as well, so there will have to be a few changes, because there's a game again on Tuesday and then Saturday. But we're solely focused on this one now. The FA Cup is a great tournament, and we've started the preparations.”

Obviously you've clearly got a strong squad to make changes in this busy spell. But I suppose you've also got plenty of players who are hungry for action?
“Yeah, of course. That's the pleasure of being a manager: when to give players a chance and when to give players a rest. Because we are still early on in this restart period, and it's going to be a long period. Hopefully it'll end on 21 August [the scheduled date for the Europa League final], so we're going to have many games ahead of us.”

Do you have any new injuries after Wednesday night?
“No. I think we came through unscathed. It's still Axel and Phil, they're out. So they're the only two absentees.”

Jesse wasn't involved with the squad on Wednesday. Is he okay?
“Yeah, he's fine now. He wasn't feeling well. He was ill, so we kept him away for a couple of days but he's fine now, and done his tests and everything.”

Obviously we all want to finish as high as possible in the league, but as you mention, we're also in the two cups. How hungry are you for trophies and how much does that matter? That tangible reward I guess, for players, to actually get their hands on a trophy like the FA Cup...
“Winning trophies is vital. This team needs to get their hands on the first trophy, so if it's the FA Cup or the Europa League, fantastic. We also know it's important to be in the Champions League for next year, so we're going to do our best to end with as many finals and trophies as possible, and as high up in the league as possible.”

Speaking personally, when it gets to the FA Cup quarter-finals, semi-finals, I still get little butterflies. Do you think the FA Cup still has that lustre, or is just old people like me that feel like that?!
“I have to say, it always used to be the last game of the season and the spectacle and the climax of the season really, and there's been so many fantastic FA Cup finals through the years. Obviously this one is going to be a different one, with the lack of supporters in the ground. But, still, we want to be there. So we've prepared well for this Norwich game. We played them twice earlier in the season, of course, and we know what we need to do well. We've looked at our games and seen what have we done well and what can we improve on.”

As you mention there, Ole, you played them twice and beat them twice very well this season. Does that have relevance for this game, or is it sort of a one-off?
“Every game is a one-off, really, and they can stop thinking about their league position. It's a chance for them to come to the cup final as well. So for us, we've looked at the first two games – of course we have – and seen what we've done well. Very much of it is due to the attitude and work-rate and, of course, then one or two will shine through. But the attitude has been spot-on in both of the games against Norwich.”

There were plenty of goals in those games, as well. Talking about goals, both Marcus and Anthony have 19 goals, Mason has 12. That's 50 goals, plus Odion's obviously chipping in as well. How important is that, rather than having somebody you absolutely rely on for goals? That there's a variety of goalscorers, a little bit like when you were playing at United...
“I think it's important that you know that goals are going to come from different positions. We've also got midfielders who can score goals. I'd like to score a few more on set plays with the size in that team. But I've been delighted with Marcus and Anthony and Mason and all the others coming in. The centre-forward position which I used to play, it's so important for them to get the confidence goals give you. I think all of them have done really well this season.”

Have you specifically worked with Anthony in terms of the no.9 role, or the coaching of it? Have you specifically done a lot of work?

“I think we all have been working on patterns of play, positions of the strikers. Of course, I chip in once in a while with what I have done in those little situations. So we do. After training's finished we do some extra finishing, and I think all of them have been focused on it. You've got to have that hunger to score a goal; it has to mean a lot for you to score a goal. I played with some of the most greedy strikers, and sometimes you have to be greedy as a striker!”