Solskjaer’s United won’t get any better: Neil Humphreys
Europa League losing finalists Red Devils must accept their 'nearly men' status
If poor David de Gea really has played his last game for Manchester United, then he managed to perform an invaluable service of sorts.
He pulled back the curtain. He revealed who the Red Devils really are.
This is Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's United, a bloated, unfocused outfit, still in search of a vague identity after almost three years.
Louis van Gaal's United don't lose to a decent bunch of Cinderellas. Unai Emery's Villarreal don't outsmart Jose Mourinho's Red Devils.
Heck, a La Liga side with a spending budget to rival Crystal Palace probably toils against David Moyes' West Ham United, let alone his former side at Old Trafford.
And yet, here we are. The seventh-best side in La Liga defeated the second-best side in English football, as Solskjaer handily benefits from the loyal support of his old boys' network and some unusual statistics.
The Red Devils finished second in the English Premier League standings with 74 points. In the previous four seasons, such a tally was good enough for only third, third, fifth and sixth positions.
The numbers indicate that Solskjaer hasn't so much raised United's game as the debilitating pandemic has dragged others down.
Fortunately, the old boys' network remains. Go online and watch BT Sport's post-match analysis of United's Europa League final defeat. Rio Ferdinand, Paul Scholes and Owen Hargreaves have the air of pallbearers mumbling something positive at an unpopular funeral.
There's the usual guff about the need for winners and leaders as the United legends play "pundit cliche" bingo. But the failure to sign such qualities indirectly criticises Solskjaer, so the comments are spun in a different direction.
Someone upstairs had to sign better players, right? Solskjaer needed more money. But, wait, hasn't he spent more than most of his rivals in the last 2½ years?
United's legends tied themselves in knots to protect their friend in a game of verbal Twister, which proved more entertaining than anything produced on the pitch (the one area that is inarguably under Solskjaer's purview).
With cruel timing, the Europa League final was played on the same date as United's Treble-winning Champions League miracle back in 1999. Twenty-two years apart, the two encounters will be remembered for their substitutions.
PROGRESS EXAGGERATED
On May 26, 1999, Sir Alex Ferguson introduced Solskjaer and Teddy Sheringham and beat Bayern Munich 2-1 in stoppage time. On May 26, 2021, Solskjaer brought on Fred. Reports of United's squad progress might be exaggerated.
But no changes were made until the 100th minute. For the previous 99 minutes, Solskjaer had handed creative duties to Scott McTominay.
The hardworking Scot was his side's Man of the Match, but asking McTominay to conduct the orchestra is rather like asking an industrial painter to take care of the Sistine Chapel.
Marcus Rashford stumbled into Villarreal defenders with the subtlety of an over-acting extra trying to impress a zombie horror movie director.
He stayed on the pitch. Mason Greenword, the liveliest forward, didn't.
Solskjaer made most of his substitutions in the final moments for the penalties, but never considered replacing de Gea, who hadn't saved one of the last 21 penalties he'd faced (not including shoot-outs).
De Gea's subsequent nightmare only underlined his manager's persistent indecision.
For most of the season, Solskjaer has rotated his goalkeepers like a PE teacher trying to give every kid a few minutes in front of their parents.
On his Manchester City arrival, Pep Guardiola had no interest in Joe Hart's medal collection.
Hart lacked the dexterity to play Guardiola's passing game, in his manager's estimation, so he was out.
But United's goalkeeping uncertainly encapsulates the Solskjaer era. If he rotates de Gea and Dean Henderson, maybe the choice will be made for him.
If he persists with the same approach in the Europa League final, maybe Bruno Fernandes will rescue him again. And if he fails, maybe his former colleagues will spare him in the TV studios.
United are trapped in an artificial reality of hope, clinging to a belief that things must get better, despite evidence to the contrary.
And that's fine, as long as those associated with the club accept this state of endless transition, forever looking ahead to a bright future that is never going to arrive.
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