Just 12 months ago, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could not have imagined this.
Back then he was still manager of Molde – still just a Manchester United legend, immortalised by his Treble-winning strike of 1999.
Now, charged with the responsibility of restoring the glory-laden years of his playing days at Old Trafford, he walks into a private room in Perth’s grand Crown Towers hotel and casino complex, with a smile that matches a sunbathed winter’s afternoon in Western Australia.
Solskjaer was brought in to lift the clouds after Jose Mourinho’s turbulent final days at Man Utd – and the contrast between this summer’s tour and last, could hardly be more stark.
Dark clouds followed Mourinho’s every move on last year’s trip to the US, with players walking on egg shells and the manager on the warpath over missed transfer targets, absent stars and his unravelling reign.
Solskjaer has not had it easy either.
A run of just two wins from United’s last 12 games brought a spectacular end to his honeymoon period – and ensured the club would miss out on Champions League football for the third time in six seasons.
Meanwhile, his highest profile player in Paul Pogba has gone public with his intention to leave.
Romelu Lukaku – the second most expensive player in United’s history - also wants out, while a promised squad overhaul, with as many as five new additions expected, is stalling with less than a month until the close of the transfer window.
Add to that Jesse Lingard’s decision to share a distasteful video from within his hotel room while on holiday, and Solskjaer’s ‘perfect life’ back in Norway – as he describes it - feels a world away right now.
Looking relaxed, dressed in a club-issue Adidas tracksuit, there is little sign of such issues taking their toll on the ever-optimistic 46-year-old.
Indeed, he’s even had a rethink about his assertion last season that it would take a miracle to challenge Manchester City and Liverpool for the Premier League title.
While he’s not making any outlandish promises, his conviction that he will be the man to restore United’s fortunes remains as strong as ever.
And in this wide-ranging interview ahead of his first full season in charge, nothing was off limits…
Do you sense that the camp is revived after the poor end to last season?
“It was disappointing, the last few months, obviously, but they've come back and it's been really encouraging. You didn't expect anything else though.
“You expected them to come back with a little bit of grit, but it's only two weeks into the pre-season and it’s been very encouraging.
“Maybe we've been too kind to them because they've not moaned enough! Maybe the pre-season hasn't been hard enough.
“I can still remember when I wasn't able to walk down the stairs (during pre-season). You had to walk backwards and all this, but I don't think we've had them there yet.”
Are you clear about the ‘front foot’ style of play you want next season? Will you have the fitness to implement it by the end of the tour?
“I would think so and that's obviously the aim now, to put the fitness into everyone and get everyone fit for August 11. But it's after the first international break, that's when the games come thick and fast.
“You can almost call it pre-season, the first month of the season, because with the first four or five games there are no midweek games, so it's still build-up time - time to build a foundation - and we needed it because the stats have shown we haven't been up there.
“But there's been a big improvement. Like Scott (McTominay) said, they haven't had sessions like this the last few pre-seasons.”
Can we expect a transformation in terms of the way United look on the pitch?
“You've got opposition that wants to play as well. But we have a clear aim and we want to look a certain way. We know it's going to take time.
“It might not be a transformation like 'Wow, that's a new team,' but I think most of us saw the intention on Saturday (against Perth Glory). We want to play on the front foot, but you can't do that for 90 minutes in 38 league games. That's hard in the Premier League.”
Has there been a disconnect between players and fans after how the season ended?
“I think it was a mentally draining season, and physically. But mentally because there were ups and downs and especially when you change manager right in the middle.
“We got a boost with the first few games, won a few, then got a few injuries and towards the end it was flat.
“It was flat towards the end and there are many reasons for that. We've just got to make sure we get more consistency.”
Louis van Gaal and Jose Mourinho ultimately failed here. What makes you can think you can succeed?
“It depends on what you think is success. They won trophies. I've admired Jose, Louis and David (Moyes). I admired them because I was still a player when they were successful managers. We're all different.
“I think they were more on the pitch, really on the pitch. That type of coach.
“I've got some great coaches and they will do most of the coaching work. We're all different and we've all got different management styles.”
Two players have arrived and two have left this summer. Did you expect more changes by this stage of pre-season?
“I know it's hard getting players in and over the line. We've been doing our jobs. We've been finding, identifying players. Scouting them.
“But they have got clubs. It took time with Aaron (Wan-Bissaka), it took time with Dan (James), but they got it over the line.
“It's not like we're going to sign 10 players. It can't be a quick fix. We're working on one or two and we're still hoping, but I also understand that the market has changed. Prices have soared.
Is there a ‘Manchester United tax’ when it comes to signing players?
“We have been linked with so many players. I think that Man United sometimes, because of the wealth maybe, we have had to pay more, a bigger premium to get players in and that’s just the world we live in. And we have taken our time, and we are not going to over pay, but we have to get the right people in, the right players.”
Is there a set number of signings you would like to make this summer?
“No there’s never any maximum because there are players here that are coming into pre-season as well that are like, ‘I might just have a look at him again because if he has changed as I think he has and it looks like he has, he might have a career here.’”
How long will it be before United are genuine title challengers again?
“I would like to be an optimist and I am always an optimist and let’s see how we start off and how close we get this season.
“A successful season is if we win a trophy at this club. That’s a good season. You have got to aim for trophies. You want to say Premier League, you want to say Europa League, FA Cup, League Cup, maybe in that order.
“I am not going to say that we can’t, but it’s not what we expect straight away. But these players, if we get the consistency and get the margins, hopefully we can get David (De Gea) over the line and signed, and we might be contenders, who knows?”
Is the Europa League a trophy you really want to win and how will you approach it in terms of the team?
“I think that it'll be a chance for some of the young ones, definitely. Then again, it's a great chance of qualifying for the Champions League for next season, so I think you'll see quite a few of the young ones you've seen already.
"They are exciting and we need to blood them in the right tournament and it depends on who you play, it depends on the stage of the tournament, group stages. Every weekend is a possibility, you can't plan three months down the line.”
Is the Europa League just as good a route back into the Champions League as the Premier League?
“It is a route, but in cup competitions you never know, it's the luck of the dice, it's post and in or post and out. It's over the season and if we can get the consistency in the league and get a settled team in the league, I'm sure we've got a chance of getting closer to the top two and let's see how close.”
Are fans more accepting that you won't be right at the top in 12 months?
“Our fans know about football. Many have followed us in the successful years, but there have been many who have been before that as well. You probably don't see them on Twitter or social media, so you don't see them as much.
"And the young ones that have just had the success are maybe like, 'Where's that?'
"But the Premier League has changed. You have to say City, how good they were last year, Liverpool won the Champions League, Tottenham in the final, Chelsea and Arsenal, so when I played there were two - us and Arsenal, for a long, long time. And then Chelsea came.”
Do you feel like you're a long way behind Man City and Liverpool?
“It did feel like it towards the end of last season, but it didn't feel like it in the beginning when I came in. And in the 21 games we had when I came in, we were still third in that 21 game period. And that is including that bad spell at the end. It was only those two that were consistent, so we're still third in that respect.”
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| C | Man City | 38 | 32 | 2 | 4 | 72 | 98 |
| 2 | Liverpool | 38 | 30 | 7 | 1 | 67 | 97 |
| 3 | Chelsea | 38 | 21 | 9 | 8 | 24 | 72 |
| 4 | Tottenham | 38 | 23 | 2 | 13 | 28 | 71 |
| 5 | Arsenal | 38 | 21 | 7 | 10 | 22 | 70 |
| 6 | Man Utd | 38 | 19 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 66 |
| 7 | Wolves | 38 | 16 | 9 | 13 | 1 | 57 |
How about in the game against City – could you sense the gulf?
"They were better than us, definitely. But there are chances, and listening to the coaching staff we were closer than we were years before. They felt that was a better performance than a couple of times before. But they were exceptional last season, I have to admit that.”
Is catching City a challenge you can achieve?
“I think we have got to focus on ourselves. I don't think I can look at Liverpool or City and think, 'They are doing it this way.' We have got to focus on us, and I believe in these players. They have shown me what they are capable of.
"They have also shown me some negative sides, which we have got to work on - better habits, get consistency in training, which will get consistency in the games and results. So you look at those two clubs, (Jurgen) Klopp and Pep (Guardiola), and as I said about Jose and Luis - I have no problem saying good things about people. They are good coaches, good managers, and we have to find our own way.
"We can't do it their way. We have to focus on what is going on at this club.”
You’ve instilled discipline into the club. What did you think about the Lingard video?
"That has been dealt with internally. I am old school, old fashioned, quite big on discipline. I am quite big on self-discipline and I can't spoon feed all these players. They have got to do it themselves.
"Of course I have had many, many years at this club and I have seen which players have been successful and those characters. You have got to be a strong character to play here. It is not like I can tell them to pass from A to B to C to D. They have to make their own decisions, and in life as well.”
You said you could do with a player like Bryan Robson. Is that the type of leader you feel you are missing?
“From the talks I’ve had with many managers and coaches from my generation, when we played, I think it’s a general society thing that there are less Robbos and (Roy) Keanos around.
"It’s the same in Norway. We’re all too comfortable. Life is so comfortable. It’s easy now when you’re an academy player - you make so much money. ‘Well I’ve made it’. And the parents live through their kids.
"I think that’s a general society thing.
"I admired Robbo, I’ve heard Gary (Neville), Becks (David Beckham) all of them talk about Robbo. I played with Keano and I think any manager in the world would say they would love to him - one who is that type of leader.
"Look at City with (Vincent) Kompany. Who knows what will happen?
"Because he was a fantastic human being, player and leader, so someone else has to step up. And someone else has to step up for us.”
One of your big players is Paul Pogba. How confident are you that you can put this unsettled summer behind you and get him back on side for next season?
“I’ve said many times about Paul that he’s a top, top boy and a great player and he’s never, ever been a problem. When we get him playing as he did when I came in, and if we get him playing like that again, he will win you over as well.”
Are there any circumstances under which Pogba will be sold - what’s the situation now?
“I’ve got to be careful - I can’t dive into all this and hypothetical questions and all that. But we’ve not had offers.
"I can say the same about whichever player. If we don’t get an offer for a player we would have to pay them out for them not to be here. So we haven’t had offers.”
"Last season you spoke to him and you were convinced he wanted to be successful here. Then he goes on holiday and says he wants a new challenge? Is that personally upsetting to you?
“No. I’ve not been upset by anything he’s said because we’ve had many conversations and I know exactly what Paul is thinking. I can give him a new challenge!”
Could he be part of something big here?
“Many of these players haven’t felt the winning feeling at this club, what it is to be at this club when you win. Yes David won the league, Ash (Young) has won the league and Phil Jones and Chris Smalling they have won the league here. But it’s not been consistent like we were, then this club is a fantastic place to be.
“Jesse, Marcus (Rashford), Paul, Andreas (Pereira), the ones that have been in the academy when I was playing, when we went on that run early on some of them said, ‘Wow we have never had this feeling before.’
But for me, the gaffer (Sir Alex Ferguson) would say, ‘We need to win 10 straight games to win the league that’s not much to ask is it? Ten games in a row?’ And it wasn’t.
That is the feeling I had all the time, ‘We can win the next 10.’
And they felt in that period invincible and that is the winning feeling we want to create again.”
Marouane Fellaini and Ander Herrera have left. Are you comfortable with your midfield as it stands? You've got James Garner coming through.
“Jimmy is young, he's very young - only 18 - so you can’t expect too much from him, but you can see he is going to be a top player.
“Andreas I expect a lot more from, Scotty I expect a lot more from. Those two between them had maybe 15, 20 starts last season. You expect them to have at least 20 each this season maybe even more. That’s maybe two players into one that can replace Ander.”
How long before United can reach City’s level of recruitment?
“I can’t say X amount of months or years before we are where they are. We’ve just got to focus on improving every day at this club. I know the difference between a post in and a post out. That’s not a lot, but it means so much at the end with the points if you win or lose that game.”
Do you have a target for if you sell Lukaku, or will you bring players through from within?
“If we sell players we will have to replace them.”
What’s your feeling about the ongoing pursuit of a technical director? Has not having one hindered you during this transfer window?
“I have a direct line to Ed (Woodward) and Matt (Judge) and Mick (Court, chief technical scout). We are quite close in that respect.
"If there is someone in between us, technical director, call it whatever you like, I’m happy with that either way because it’s not going to be too big a difference.
"We do have our process in how we scout players now, but once in a while you have to act quickly.”
Recruitment been a problem for the club for a number of years?
“It’s never a problem – a challenge.”
But compared to the rivals you’re trying to catch, does something need to change?
“That’s your opinion. I can only talk from my period here. I wanted Aaron and Dan James.
"They were very high targets. Aaron was a top target.
"We can’t expect Dan to be David Beckham or Ryan Giggs straightaway, but he will be a top player. He’s not a £70million player, no, but he’ll be worth it.”
Can you get Alexis Sanchez back to his best?
“I will have to help. I’ve just answered a question here that you can’t spoon feed them. They’ve got to come in and grab their chances and Alexis is quality and he showed it in Copa America. Then he got his injury.
I don’t think it’s too bad, so I’m hoping he will be available for maybe Kristiansund or AC Milan, so he will at least get some football before the season starts.”
He got 30 goals for Arsenal in a season as a centre forward. Can he do that role for United?
“The way we hope we are going to play, it doesn’t have to be a 6ft4 striker, so Alexis can be part of that forward line.”
Are you planning for him to be here at the start of the season?
“At the moment, yes I am.”
