06 March 2024 , 13:43
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Former Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had admitted that he has weighed up a coaching comeback in the US - with Roy Keane brutally weighing in with a scathing put down.
The Old Trafford hero sat down for a rare interview with the stars of Gary Neville's 'Just Stick to Football' podcast as he broke his silence on his time out of the game following his sacking at United. Shown the door by the Glazers in 2021 following three years in charge at the club, he has not worked since in a coaching capacity.
However, the ex-super sub star revealed to an ensemble cast consisting of Neville, Jamie Carragher, Ian Wright, Roy Keane and Jill Scott that he has mooted the possibility of returning to coaching in that interim period. In fact, Solskjaer intimated that he had sat down with chiefs at multiple MLS clubs in the past year to thrash out talks.
The conversation was sparked as the panel discussed the start made by Phil Neville, brother of host Gary, after he assumed the reins as manager of Portland Timbers. His first role since his sacking by former Red Devils colleague David Beckham at Inter Miami, Gary reported back that his family member is 'enjoying' his return to MLS action.
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The elder Neville brother then asked Solskjaer whether he too has considered heading Stateside to re-launch his coaching career after his spell in charge at United. Issuing a candid reply, he admitted: "Oh yeah, I went last October just to speak to a few clubs," before clarifying he 'would' be up for a move to the US in the future.
However, his confession was met with a caustic response from ex-teammate Keane, with his former captain on hand with a typically brutal put down. Sporting a cheeky grin, the Irishman laughed: "Where? Disneyland?", leading to a chorus of laughter around the table.
Neville smiled: "Brutal, that," as he then pushed the retired goalscorer, on whether he would be able to settle in the US, asking: "Would you be happy over there in America?" as Carragher chuckled, to which Solskjaer admitted: "You don't know before you try do you?"
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admitted that he has considered returning to the dugout in the future (TheOverlap/Youtube)This comes after speculation linked him with a potential move to Charlotte FC in MLS last year, although their team president Joe LaBue eventually rubbished the rumours. He acknowledged: "To be very clear, Ole visited our facility along with many other MLS facilities last week. It's common and best practice to host people from across the globe and we'll continue to do so. We're proud of what we've built. End of story here."
Following on from this, the panel also talked through the former Manchester United boss' adaptation back to life away from the Old Trafford dugout following his dismissal. "I needed time out, I have properly enjoyed it - just prioritized myself, family and had a few offers."
Sharing his reaction to the supposed proposals he has received, the Norwegian continued: "It's like 'nah, I'm not ready', it's one of them where I have to be somewhere where I can be myself, not like anyone dictating 'you need to do this, you need to do this' because when you've been at United, you manage them and learn a few things.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer gave an honest synopsis of his time at Manchester United in a wide-ranging chat (TheOverlap/Youtube)"You want to do it your own way the next time. I'm enjoying myself. That's the thing, you think 'I don't really need a job, If a job pops up then why not?" Solskjaer bluntly declared. Riffing off his admission, host Neville then asked his former teammate how losing his job had affected him.
The 1999 Champions League final hero then remarked: "It hit me hard the next day, I knew the day before, 100 per cent. It hit me at half time against Watford I knew 'that's it'. So the team talk was about whoever wants to play can play, put your hand up if you don't want to play."
On the feeling he got that the end of his time as manager was approaching, he later claimed: "You get [the feeling], some of the players stop running, stop believing. That's maybe the biggest word - they didn't believe and care maybe - it's just one of them where there's no point for me trying to get this changed."
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