Manchester United 3-0 Fulham: 5 ways how Solskjaer masterminded the win

#4 Anticipating Fulham's Physical Approach

Fulham FC v Manchester United - Premier League

The home team came at United with all their might right from the whistle. They piled men forward and tried to force United into submission. To make matters worse, Mitrovic tried to bully the United defense and used his physical attributes very well. The Serbian was a nuisance in the opening stages, troubling United with his strength and ability to hold the ball. However, Solskjaer seemed to have anticipated this, because apart from the odd occasions, Mitrovic rarely troubled the United defense.

The Norwegian used Jones and Smalling, two of his most experienced defenders, to nullify the physical presence of Fulham. Jones matched the Serbian for his strength, while Smalling was clever with his positioning. In the end, the two English defenders ensured that Mitrovic did not trouble United too much.

Solskjaer also kept his defense compact and defended narrow, denying the home team any room through the middle. In the end, it was enough to earn a valuable clean sheet.

About the author

Deepungsu is a veteran football journalist who has been covering daily transfer roundups and news for over six years at Sportskeeda. He has written close to 9000 articles for the website, and has garnered over 19.5Million reads.

Deepungsu holds a PG degree in Microbiology and an MBA degree in Total Quality Management. He has an extensive two-decade long writing experience, which includes a decade of sports blogging. His writing prowess has even led his work getting cited on the legendary Franz Beckenbauer's Wikipedia page.

Inspired by Diego Maradona, Deepungsu played as an attacking midfielder for his local club at subdivision level in his initial years and scored an important goal or two. However, his all-time favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and evidently, he feels Argentina's glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment for fulfilling his long-standing dream. He is also an ardent East Bengal fan.

Deepungsu has been a Manchester United supporter since the year 2000. Unsurprisingly, his favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson and the Scotsman helped him get through some of the toughest days of his life. Like the fiery Scot, Deepungsu also leaves no stone unturned when it comes to accuracy in articles and only relies on credible sources.

Despite believing in Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland to create an iconic rivalry, Deepungsu reckons no one can match the longevity of Messi and Ronaldo. He spends his leisure time writing about life on his blog, reading books, and playing the guitar.

Know More

Edited by Sudeshna Banerjee