OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER says Manchester United need to take a leaf out of boxing champion Tyson Fury’s book when they go down.
Deontay Wilder satisfied Fury twice before completing himself to come back and claim victory in a triple heavyweight match.
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It was something United couldn’t do as they took some strong early kicks against Liverpool last Sunday before going down 5-0.
“Of course you have to raise your hands, this performance is not acceptable and we have to look at why it is not acceptable,” Solskjaer said.
“I use the analogy that it felt like we were a drunken boxer, falling in the first four minutes or in the first round.
“We had the opportunity, we conceded a goal, we wanted to level it, and we opened up a bit too frantically against a good team.
“You see Tyson Fury when he gets knocked down a few times, it’s amazing how he’s five, six and seven, and he gets up and back again.
“We got up very early and tried to sort it out. Brains have to be better but we had to look at different things too, the connection has to be direct.”
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Solskjaer is still on the line after picking up just one point from his last four Premier League games with a trip to Tottenham at 5:30pm on Saturday.
After that was a difficult trip away from home in the Champions League to Atalanta followed by the Manchester derby.
But he said he was in the “trenches” with his players this week after they were hit hard and ready to go out to fight.
Solskjaer said: “When you get criticized like you are, you come into the trenches with your teammates, that’s the reaction, whatever this club has been through before, it’s about courage, self-confidence and sticking together.
“I’ve had some really bad moments as a player here and when I was a manager I dealt with the setbacks, there have been at least two or three crises since I became a coach here and one thing I can say is I will always give it a good shot and fight it.
“The players come in, they are decent professionals, good people and we have an environment in and around the place where there is a lot of respect for each other.
I am responsible for the reaction, the result and the performance
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
“It’s been a tough week, of course, we had to deal with the result and the performance against Liverpool which we know wasn’t good enough and that’s something footballers have to deal with, that’s why we’re in this match.
“You have to look forward to the next match, and when you get to the next match arrange it and challenge the problems.
“We need a reaction and it’s also my job to put the players in the right frame of mind, I’m responsible for the reaction, the result and the performance.
“We worked on the pitch, worked on everything that needed to be rated for a footballer, it’s not just a frame of mind but a strategy, a game plan, tactics, technically, we had a good week and I feel the boys are ready to give their best.”
Solskjaer admitted he had received words of encouragement from Sir Alex Ferguson who was at Carrington this week on a trade date.
“We spoke for a moment because he was there with Cristiano,” Solskjaer said.
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