With almost half of the 2020/21 season still to come, Manchester United remain in the trophy hunt on three fronts.
That has to be seen as some sort of improvement from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s point of view, even if he doesn’t yet have any silverware as a marker of just how far his Red Devils squad have come under his tenure.
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One of the best pieces of business that he has done has largely remained under the radar, however, the re-emergence of Paul Pogba as a genuinely world-class midfielder, has the Norwegian’s fingerprints all over it.
The player’s mouthy agent, Mino Raiola, has been put back in his box, and the Frenchman is playing as well as at any other time in his Old Trafford career.
To that end, Solskjaer will be hoping to get Pogba to commit his long-term future to the club and end all of the continued speculation.
“Speculation about Paul is always going to be there, we’ve got a good, open dialogue with Paul so what we talk about and how we see that situation remains between us,” he was quoted as saying by The Sun.
“I’m just happy he’s focused and playing really well and he’s happy within himself and that’s important — you can see Paul enjoying football himself with a red shirt on.
“Paul is a Man United player through and through.
“He’s been here in two spells, he came as a kid he’s learnt about the history of the club, the passion of the club, he wants to do the best for Man United when he’s here.
“I think we’ve seen that he really cares for his team and he’s trying to be as successful as everyone else.”
It’s entirely possible that Raiola will look to move his client on in the summer, but Solskjaer has played a blinder by choosing his words very carefully.
There can be no room for doubt now as to who would be to blame if another war of words was to ensue, ultimately leading to a move away.