Boss won’t give rumour wings
UNITED manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has refused to be drawn on speculation of a potential move for Red Bull Salzburg striker Erling Haaland.
The Norwegian forward netted an impressive brace on Wednesday night as Salzburg fell to a 3-2 defeat against Napoli in the Champions League.
Haaland’s latest scoring exploits mean the teenager, son of former City midfielder Alf Inge Haaland, has now netted 20 goals in just 13 games this season, with his sensational hat-trick against Genk last month the standout performance so far.
United are keen to add a new striker to their squad when the January transfer window opens and the suggestion of signing Haaland is one which appears to be popular among fans.
Solskjaer sanctioned the sale of Romelu Lukaku to Inter Milan in the summer window but United were unable to find a suitable replacement for the Belgian ahead of the new season.
Talk of signing a new striker dominated much of the pre-match chat ahead of United’s 1-0 win against FK Partizan on Thursday night, but speaking after the match Solskjaer remained coy on the rumours.
“I don’t think it’s the time now for me to talk about other team’s strikers,” Solskjaer said.
“I spoke about Harry Kane yesterday and Erling today, I don’t think it’s right for me.”
Earlier in the season Solskjaer had spoken fondly of the 19-year-old striker and he admitted that everyone in Norway was excited by the progress of his compatriot.
He said: “It’s great watching him. I think everyone in Norway is excited by his development.”