Pranav Nair
Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer unhappy with Premier League scheduling ahead of EL final
According to the Mirror, Manchester United manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has expressed his unhappiness at the Premier League for handing his side a disadvantage ahead of the Europa League final.
The Red Devils take on Villarreal in the Europa League final in Gdansk on 26 May. A win will ensure our season that promised so much would still end with us ending a four-year wait for silverware.
With the second spot already secured, Solskjaer’s side had little to play for at the Molineux tonight. The much-changed team however won 2-1, ensuring United ended the league campaign unbeaten away from home.
Despite the result, Solskjaer was unhappy that Villarreal has had an extra day of rest going into the showpiece event in Gdansk. The La Liga played their last round of games on Saturday, with Villarreal getting an extra 24 hours to recover.
“I thought it was quite poignant [sic] that La Liga move all their games to the day before so Villarreal can play their full strength team just to prepare for the final.”
Solskjaer admitted that the upcoming match had a bearing on the team he put out earlier tonight. But then given that second place was already secure, there wasn’t much apart from pride for us to play for.
“I think we could look after ourselves more as well, could get some help. So I had to make these changes.”
While we understand Solskjaer’s concerns, it can be argued that considering his key players were rested, he really does not have much to complain about.
United are comfortably the better team and should be expected to win against Villarreal. Anything short of that would be a calamitous end to the season.
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Unlike United, Villarreal did have much to play for on the final day. Their loss to Real Madrid saw them finish seventh, missing out on the Europa League qualification spots.
In some ways, this will fire them up further ahead of the final. After all, a win on the night could elevate them to the Champions League next season.
