sport news Manchester United: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's future judged by pundits

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer faces the toughest period of his Manchester United career so far as the calls for his sacking intensified following their humiliating 5-0 home defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.

The Norwegian has faced pressure in the past, but nothing like this as his team were put to the sword in their biggest game of the season - with Jurgen Klopp's men racing into a 4-0 lead at the break. 

Pundits have been having their say on Solskjaer's future all season long, with United guilty of some poor results before their hammering at the hands of Liverpool. 

But the manner of the latest defeat has left even the most conservative of pundits admitting his time could soon be up.

Sportsmail examines the views of football's biggest pundits and what they think should be done on the future of Solskjaer. 

STAY

Gary Neville

By far Solskjaer's biggest cheerleader having played alongside him, Neville has not been afraid of criticising the Norwegian this season but has stopped short of calling for his sacking, saying he will never demand for any manager to lose his job. 

Before the Liverpool thrashing, Neville was adamant that he would not give into pressure from fans and suggest that Solskjaer deserved to be sacked.

'I've got Manchester United fans on my social media all of the time saying, "Gary, he's your mate. You won't call him out,"' he told Sky Sports last week.

'No, I won't. I won't call Steve Kean out, or Arsene Wenger at Arsenal. I'm not going to come on this show 11 years later and ask for a manager to be sacked. It's never going to happen. He's a club legend. He's my team-mate. I actually like him a lot.

'Manchester United have failed with two previous managers who have been world class. I think they persist until the end of the season.'

After witnessing United fall apart against Liverpool, Neville was thrown into a back and forth debate with fellow pundit Jamie Carragher over his defence of Solskjaer as he refused to change his view and insists the club will 'hold their nerve' due to the current ownership set-up.

'If this was in the immediate post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, Ole would be under massive pressure tonight,' he added after the clash at Old Trafford.

'But I think the club will hold their nerve. I don't think they have planned for a new manager this season. I think they will sit with him until the end of the season. There will be a massive outcry from fans and media that Ole should be sacked and I can understand that after that game. It was a monstrously bad day and it takes some recovery from.

'But I think this club is a lot more stable in terms of the ownership - I think now might be the time for them to communicate with the fans if they are going to back the manager for the next six to eight months, which I think they will. 

'They have said they believe in the projects even though there will be some bumps. Ole says they are close. I am not convinced because I look at those players and the other teams are really good and Man Utd are nowhere near as good. I want to see a structured, organised performance. I believe the club are stable and will not sack the manager but they have to get back on the bike.'

Bryan Robson 

Unlike Neville, former Manchester United midfielder Bryan Robson never played alongside Solskjaer but stressed it was 'not the time' to swing the axe on the boss.

The former Red Devils captain admitted the result against Liverpool was 'embarrassing' but pointed out that making a change wouldn't necessarily work and that there were a lack of suitable alternatives. 

'This was embarrassing but you can't say it hasn't been coming,' he said in his column for Sportsmail. 

'The pressing game that United have tried to adopt just isn't working. The players are not adjusting to whatever Ole is asking them to do and the system needs to change.

'The best performances from this team in recent seasons have come from being compact, strong defensively and hitting teams on the counter attack.

'But it's not the time to sack Ole. I do believe he will keep his job. It's easy to clamour for the manager to go after such a painful defeat but change now causes more upheaval. 

'The club have found that changes every couple of years just don't work and who do you replace him with? I'm not sure there's a candidate who can make such a significant difference without causing major disruption again.'

GO 

Jamie Carragher 

Liverpool legend Carragher had cutting words for Solskjaer in the build up to the game with his old side - saying United needed a 'better manager', although the Norwegian dismissed it as mind games to help his beloved Reds win.

But speaking after the 5-0 loss, Carragher bickered with Neville about Solskjaer and reiterated his view and said he honestly felt that Solskjaer - while praising the job he had done so far - was 'not good enough' for the Man United post. 

'I think Ole has done a good job but to take on Klopp, Tuchel and Pep, Manchester United need a better manager,' he told Sky Sports.

'I wasn't saying that on Monday in a disrespectful way, I feel for Ole - that will be the darkest day in his career. 

'I don't want to get involved in a slanging match, I know Ole said something back and rightly so. 

'I'm not comfortable saying someone should be sacked - but we are comfortable saying Fred is not good enough or Scott McTominay is not good enough so I do not feel too bad saying Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is not good enough.

'Manchester United should have the best in class - the best managers and coaches in the world. If you have Ole as the manager you should have someone like Carlos Queiroz as the assistant coach. 

'You cannot have people learning on the job who have never been at the club of that size. They have got Mike Phelan but I do not think he's a coach, there's Michael Carrick and Kieren McKenna, they have never coached anyone in their lives.

'You have got to have someone who has been there and done it. You cannot be learning on the job at Manchester United.' 

Chris Sutton

Former Blackburn and Celtic striker Chris Sutton believes Solskjaer has run out of time to prove he still has the quality to lead United to silverware and said it was a

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