Top 10 Young Football Managers (Part I)

9. Ole Gunnar Solksjær

Age: 40

Nationality: Norwegian

Current club: Molde

Major Honours/Accolades: 2 Norwegian Premier League titles (2011, 2012)

Expert Views: The most famous Norwegian footballer of all time had decided to turn coach long before he hung up his boots. When arriving at an under-performing Molde, Solskjær’s boyhood club, he was billed as their ‘returning saviour’. They’d gone from league and cup runners-up in 2009 to a flirt with relegation in 2010. A return to the medal places was always the unspoken order.

Adding what he’d learnt in Salford – team cultivation, man management, an unrelenting drive even in the last-minute of added time – to his kindred club in a very youthful league was surely destined for success, but what he has given them exceeds even the most unrealistic expectations upon arrival.

A strong spine, a sizeable squad and an adaptable set of ears were always the foundation of any successful Manchester United team, and it’s only when Molde have swayed from this that they’ve been unsuccessful; 2013 won’t yield a third successive league title for the Romsdal club as they are currently too far off the pace. But one poor transfer window and a demoralising drop in form shouldn’t overshadow Solskjær’s potential as a coach.

He’s not the most outspoken, idealistic or fashionable coach in Norway, but he is destined for at least one of two big jobs – they both play in red, one begins with ‘M’ and the other has never lost to Brazil.