It’s never a good sign when the main questions at the press conference ahead of Champions League game are about home team coach and his potential sacking, and it’s never a good sign when the coach is comparing himself to the previous one. But, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is doing exactly that, which means he is under pressure even if he doesn’t want to admit it. After a 4-2 loss in Leicester, the Norwegian is under criticism from everybody: from sir Alex Ferguson, to former player Garry Neville and ex Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher. What happens when you miss the penalty and have to drive Alex Ferguson home?After four defeats in seven games, win against Atalanta is a must, but the Red Devil’s coach is calm, as he believes in himself and doesn’t look at the critics.“We’ve progressed over the years. Sixth when I was here for half a season then third and second. You can see the progress, improvement and development, and this season we still want to improve. I prefer not to watch Neville and Carragher. It doesn’t affect me. I’ve got my values, I’ve got my way of managing and I believe in myself. As long as the club believes in me, I’m pretty sure that Jamie Carragher’s opinion is not going to change that” said Manchester coach.5-time winner 🏆178games 💪136 goals ⚽️… and THIS his reaction to losing one training rondo! That’s what makes @Cristiano great. #UCL pic.twitter.com/rIIwLHwIej— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) October 20, 2021 Although he mentioned that the club progressed after he came, the facts are not supporting his statement, at least during this season, as Manchester is worse in all statistical parameters than before. Maybe the statistic will be better at the end, but for that to happen, Manchester needs to start winning and Soskjaer has to remain as coach. But will it happen, since the results are not great?“I’m in dialogue with the club all the time and that’s an open and honest discussion. There’s pressure all the time. There’s pressure on me, of course, but we’ve been through this before and come through it stronger as individuals and as a team. Yeah, we’ve signed players that have raised expectations. Other teams have signed players and improved as well, so we’re in the same boat as all the top teams. It’s very important to bounce back. In the Champions League group stage, if you win all three home games and get a result away from home, most likely you go through. That’s what we’re aiming for now. A win against a very good Atalanta side would be massive for us and a big boost” said the Norwegian. “You cannot cook a good dish if you don’t spend time in the kitchen. So, take time.”Manchester will still be without Varane for this game, but Fred and Cavani are back. Ronaldo should start the game, as he has a good record against Italian clubs: 18 goals in 23 matches. On the other side, Atalanta will miss no less than five players: Rafael Toloi, Robin Gosens, Hans Hateboer, Matteo Pessina and Berat Djimsiti are all injured. These teams have never met in European cups before. United will compete against seventh different Italian team. The team from Bergamo won three of their last six games against the English teams. They were twice better than Everton in the Europa League in 2017/2018 season, as well against Liverpool in the Champions League in November 2020.UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE – GROUP STAGE – MATCHDAY 3Wednesday19:45: (1.27) Barcelona (6.75) Dynamo Kyiv (11.0)19:45: (2.20) Salzburg (3.50) Wolfsburg (3.50)22:00: (8.00) Benfica (5.30) Bayern (1.40)22:00: (1.80) Man.Utd. (3.80) Atalanta (4.80)22:00: (3.25) Young Boys (3.40) Villareal (2.35)22:00: (3.60) Lille (3.10) Sevilla (2.35)22:00: (1.12) Chelsea (10.5) Malmo (25.0)22:00: (3.50) Zenit (3.35) Juventus (2.25)
