You can see why Ole Gunnar Solskjaer got carried away.
Having witnessed Cristiano Ronaldo tower above the Atalanta defence and power home a header late in the game to secure a vital Champions League comeback win and send the Old Trafford faithful into raptures, Solskjaer would have felt an undeniable sense of euphoria.
With his United side 2-0 down at home and looking desperate, a second half blitz fitting of the Ferguson days of old completed a stunning turnaround ahead of a much-anticipated encounter with Liverpool.
Attack, attack, attack was the second half order. And it was carried out in spectacular fashion. The ‘United way’ was well and truly alive and kicking.
But Solskjaer let it go to his head. Riding the high of that wondrous wave, the Norwegian appeared, from the outside at least, to view his side as unshakeable, unbeatable. That theory hadn’t been helped by a series of comeback triumphs last season as his United side consistently ‘showed character’ by coming back from the brink to dramatically clinch victory from the jaws of defeats on countless occasions.
Even this season, Jesse Lingard struck late against West Ham and let’s not even get started on Ronaldo’s other eleventh-hour heroics.
Are you not entertained? While that will certainly be the case for the watching neutrals, the approach simply isn’t sustainable. Not for a club like United.
Solskjaer approached the Liverpool game with a spring in his step and a smile on his face, but that was soon abolished as Jurgen Klopp’s side inflicted the most humiliating moment of Solskjaer’s United career – be it as either player or manager.
Put simply, the Norwegian was too naïve and too caught up in the moment. It was Liverpool. It was Old Trafford. It was the United way to attack and put yet more opposition to the sword following their swashbuckling second half performance against a makeshift Atalanta. But that was exactly the problem: it was Liverpool.
Klopp’s Reds were far too good to buckle under the Old Trafford buzz, far too organised and composed to become ruffled by United’s reputation and dreamy yet delusional attachment to the ‘United way’. Solskjaer played right into Liverpool’s hands.
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With another of the world’s finest teams arriving at the Theatre of Dreams on Saturday lunchtime in Pep Guardiola's marvellous Manchester City, Solskjaer must ensure he doesn’t suffer another Old Trafford nightmare.
Last weekend’s 3-0 triumph over struggling Tottenham was big, but this is on another scale altogether. Not just for United but for Solskjaer more than anyone.
The relatively inexperienced coach has seen the heat turned up in recent weeks with many questioning whether he has the ability to manage at the elite end of the game’s managerial spectrum.
After rightly holding his hands up following the Liverpool debacle, Solskjaer showed progress at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last Saturday, rearranging his United system and bolstering the backline with five in defence. It was cagey, it was organised, and it was disciplined. It was also urgently needed.
If the Red Devils are to take anything from this season’s first Manchester derby on Saturday lunchtime, even if it’s a sense of pride other than points, they are going to need a repeat performance. And some.
Having seen Ronaldo repeat similar Champions League heroics with another stunning late strike to salvage a result on Wednesday night against the same Italian opponents, Solskjaer must be cautious and learn his lessons from the Liverpool mauling.
It may well be Manchester City. It may well be Old Trafford. It may well be a Manchester derby. But Solskjaer must play the opposition and not the occasion. Another gung-ho approach off the back of European ecstasy will only lead to more Manchester misery for United and you get the impression another thumping will be the final straw.
Solskjaer has been given a lifeline, and that’s all well and good, but if he fails to show progress, to show he truly has learned his lessons on his recent crash-course in coaching, he surely won’t get another chance.
Mistakes provide the best learning opportunities in life. For United’s sake, let’s hope Solskjaer has learned from his.
