Solskjaer: Manchester United don’t have the necessary ‘spark’ up front

Stefan Bienkowski

• Updated: 19 May 2021 15:43 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has admitted that his side are struggling because they don’t have the necessary “spark” to score goals.

Although the Old Trafford side are unbeaten in their last nine games in all competitions, Solskjaer’s side have failed to score a single goal in their last three matches. 

The lack of goals has meant Man United have dropped a number of points in recent Premier league games and sit 14 points behind Manchester City ahead of the derby clash between both sides this weekend. 

And while Solskjaer is quick to point out that his side are performing better than last season, he also acknowledges that his forward’s inability to score goals is costing the team. 

“We have had a week without scoring a goal, not six weeks’ of bad form,” said the Man United manager in a press conference on Friday. “We beat Real Sociedad 4-0 and Southampton 9-0. 

“I am not buying into the narrative that we have had such a dip in form. We have defended well but we have lacked a little spark to score a goal.”

How likely are Man United to sign a new striker in the summer?

Although Solskjaer can call upon attacking talents like Bruno Fernandes, Edinson Cavani, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford, the Man United manager undoubtedly needs some extra firepower next season if his side are to challenge for major titles. 

As such, the transfer rumour mill has duly obliged and linked the Old Trafford side with all sorts of strikers. Perhaps the three most notable so far are Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland, Tottenham Hotspur star Harry Kane and Andre Silva from Eintracht Frankfurt. 

However, whether this trio of strikers are obtainable goals is another matter entirely. It seems as though Dortmund will do all they can to keep a hold of Haaland this summer and Man United would undoubtedly need to fork out a fortune to pull Kane away from Tottenham. 

As such, that probably leaves Silva as the only believable target for the Old Trafford side this summer. However, whether Solskjaer and his backroom team are willing to spend most of their budget on another forward remains to be seen.