Solskjaer's Cardiff adventure is the first step to follow in Sir Alex's footsteps

Many wonder why a stable mind such as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s wants to indulge in Vincent Tan’s mad steakhouse that is Cardiff City football club at a time when the Norwegian was enjoying a success-laden peaceful life off the coast of Molde in his homeland.

The 40-year old former Manchester United great who is still revered at Old Trafford like a cult figure is certainly not a man who will take up the hot seat in the Welsh capital for no reason.

Here we are talking about a man who has worked his socks off under Sir Alex Ferguson for 10 years and was one of the leading actors in Manchester United’s golden generation of the late nineties. Even after retiring from football Solskjaer nurtured his coaching and managerial skills under the great Scotsman who considers the Norwegian one of his most loyal students.

Having won three titles, two league championships and a cup in three seasons with Molde in his very first big managerial breakthrough, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has chosen his time to perfection to take the next step forward. Yet why did it have to be Cardiff when the club is under so much turmoil for the madness of its owner who still wonders why his goalkeeper David Marshall has yet to score a goal? It is even surprising to note how Mr.Tan came to know about Solskjaer let alone pronounce his name in the first place, given his overall knowledge of the game.

With the former Norway international footballer tasting victory in the very first game in the Cardiff dug out on Saturday against Newcastle United in the FA Cup third-round coming from behind with two late goals just the same way he used to win games for Manchester United, there is no doubting the fact that the United legend used his immense maturity and picture perfect football brain to make a hard bargain before taking up the job.

Vincent Tan is the unquestionable villain in the Malky Mackay sacking saga and the British press rightly bombarded the Malaysian entrepreneur for knowing nothing about the integrity of British football and the game itself. Yet Tan is surrounded by people who want to do well for the club, people like club chairman Mehmet Dalman ,and in all probability Solskjaer’s appointment is his brainchild rather than Tan’s who might have been thinking amidst all the turmoil why Cardiff City are yet to win a World Cup or European Championship!

Media reports suggested that Sir Alex warned Ole not to take the job at South Wales that the latter denied, but in hindsight it is clear that the former Manchester United manager would surely be guiding his famous bargain signing of 1996 who would go on to be a famous super-sub coming on as a substitute and winning games late which would become a hallmark of Ferguson’s Old Trafford legacy.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is an astute reader of the game. He has an amazing mind when it comes to analyzing opposition strengths and weaknesses. A story goes around the Old Trafford folklore that the Norwegian, while sitting on the bench as a substitute, would analyze the entire game looking for the opposition defenders’ weak points before entering the field, and win the match for United with his deadly finishing. Some football brain indeed that we are talking about now!

The ‘Baby-faced assassin’ is now back in the Premier League as a manager to test his mettle not just against Premier League opponents but also against a comical owner in the form of Vincent Tan – who is more inclined to change club colours rather than buy useful players – to take Cardiff to safety. If anyone can stop this highly successful Malaysian businessman from ruining a very good football club it has to be be Ole Gunnar Solskjaer who, in his first few days with the club, has looked completely in control of the situation and not letting Tan run the show. Certainly a Ferguson-esque start by the former Molde boss. He has made it clear he will have the final say when it comes to football matters and that there will be no repeat of the injustice meted out to Malky Mackay.

It is a bit surprising to note that when he had the opportunity to manage a more coveted club like Aston Villa in 2012, Solskjaer turned it down for the simple reason he did not want to unsettle his family from his Molde home. It is in fact now a case of waiting for the right moment to step into the ruthless world of Premier League management and for a wonderful reader of the game that Ole is it is entirely expected that one of Premier League’s most lethal finishers wanted to have enough experience before managing a Premier League club.

Managing Cardiff City is his first shot at his most prime ambition – to manage Manchester United in the near future. For a man as credible and astute as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, being ambitious is his potent weapon and Cardiff is his gateway towards an assault on the most coveted job in the world, and the man himself has made no qualms about his ultimate aim.

David Moyes is Sir Alex’s hand picked successor and the former Everton boss deserves that and with six years in his contract the Scotsman has ample time to follow in the footsteps of the great Scot that he succeeded. But Manchester United need a personality as strong and potent as Ferguson and with 235 appearances for a club spanning a decade Ole Gunnar Solskjaer certainly fits the bill given his ruthlessness in being a great advert of the game just as he was during his playing days at Old Trafford.