Solskjaer: We have a clear vision for the future

Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday, the boss was asked about his current assessment of the squad and his roadmap for the rest of the season.

"We have a plan in place," he said, "and hopefully we can get the results to speed it up. Sometimes it doesn't go at the speed you want to, but it's still going in the right direction.

“We do have a clear picture of what we think the squad is going to look like in June and July, and hopefully we'll get as much done as soon as possible. We do have a plan.”

As the festive fixture list approaches, Ole is eager to see more consistency from his players in what is often an important part of the campaign.

So far this term, the Reds have drawn six of our 14 league matches, having led in all of them. However, our recent fightback in the 3-3 draw against Sheffield United, scoring three times after going 2-0 down, has given the manager confidence that his squad has a strong mentality.

"We fell behind a few times this year and we've turned it around, but of course we've been leading and given the lead away," said the boss.

"I felt the team towards the end of last season didn't have the desire, didn't have the heart, didn't have the belief that this was going to turn around. This group has a different mentality."

Ole added: "There is a lot of work being done behind the scenes for the culture in the team. We need results of course, that's the evidence. All of those six games we've drawn this year I feel we should have won. We need to do that on the pitch.

“I believe in these players and that we can win any game on any given day, but we need to get more consistency. For me, when we get players back fit, if we've got the full squad fit, I'm sure we can challenge and move up the table.”

One of the areas Ole hopes will help improve United's consistency is the return of several players to full fitness. Fred and Andreas Pereira have made up our central midfield in recent league matches following injuries to Scott McTominay, Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic. The Norwegian hopes that the trio's gradual return to fitness will help increase competitiveness for positions within the matchday squad.

“We have a situation at the moment that we've had injuries,” said Solskjaer. “I'm not talking about anyone in particular, but I've been part of a squad where you're never guaranteed a place in the team and that's where we're going to get to at this club as well.”

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