Man Utd facing three games in five days following rearrangement of postponed Liverpool fixture; game called off earlier this month after anti-Glazer protestors broke into Old Trafford; Solskjaer: "We're going to do everything for our fans to celebrate what we're doing on the pitch"
Tuesday 11 May 2021 09:41, UK
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says Manchester United want to earn wins over Leicester and Liverpool this week to give supporters something to celebrate amid ongoing unhappiness with the Glazer family's ownership.
United face Leicester on Tuesday evening before playing Liverpool just two days later. The game against Jurgen Klopp's side was due to take place on May 2 but was postponed after anti-Glazer protestors broke into Old Trafford shortly before kick-off.
Both of this week's games will also take place at Old Trafford, bringing with it the potential for further incidents, but Solskjaer hopes events on the field will be the main talking point.
He said: "Security measures are being looked at. I hope we can keep the protests - if there are protests - down to loud voices, nothing violent. We want to listen, the players want to play the game.
"We're playing Liverpool - of course we want to beat Liverpool and we want to beat Leicester. So we're going to do everything we can for our fans to celebrate what we're doing on the pitch."
Many United supporters are unhappy with various aspects of the Glazer family's reign, ranging from the way they financed the deal to buy the club in 2005 to their decision to back the failed European Super League last month.
The Manchester United Supporters' Trust wrote to the Glazers last week, urging them to engage with fans.
Co-chairman Joel Glazer responded by insisting he is "personally committed" to strengthening communication, and said he wants to "accelerate" discussions regarding fan-share ownership.
United's game against Leicester comes just two days after they won 3-1 at Aston Villa, meaning they face a demanding run of three matches in just five days following the rearrangement of the Liverpool game.
The victory at Villa Park was secured by Mason Greenwood, whose seventh goal in his last 10 games saw United postpone Manchester City's Premier League title celebrations.
Greenwood has timed his upturn in form perfectly, with Gareth Southgate set to name his England squad for this summer's European Championships later this month.
The 19-year-old made his international debut off the bench against Iceland in September, but was then sent home for breaking the team's coronavirus protocols and has not been called up since.
However, UEFA will allow teams to take an enlarged 26-man squad to this summer's tournament, and Solskjaer believes Southgate should consider making Greenwood one of his extra players.
The United boss said: "It's not my job. Gareth knows Mason well enough. He knows Mason can turn a game around in one split second.
"He's working, learning on the job, getting more robust. He's played more than 100 games for us - he's been incredible.
"He'll have a long, long future with England. I'm sure Gareth will think long and hard about which 26 he's going to pick.
"I like him, so it says itself what I would have done."
