Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says Manchester United’s struggles are hard to watch, but they may have been self-inflicted given the club’s decision to sell Scott McTominay.
United have endured another turgid campaign after sacking Erik ten Hag and replacing the Dutchman with Ruben Amorim, who has failed to make an impact.
Amorim’s side are 15th in the table before Sunday’s visit to Brentford, though there is still hope of silverware in the Europa League, in which they lead Athletic Bilbao 3-0 after the first leg of their semi-final on Thursday.
Central to United’s struggles has been their lack of success in the transfer market, with the likes of Rasmus Hojlund, Joshua Zirkzee and Manuel Ugarte failing to impose themselves at Old Trafford.
McTominay went the other way to Napoli in August, and has not looked back since, with his 11 goals this campaign the most of any midfielder in Serie A.
“Scott and Fred together, they were lads you would put your hat on every day to give 100%,” Solskjaer, now managing Besiktas, told BBC Sport.
“How you can sell Scott is beyond me.”
11 – #McTominay scored 11 goals in the current league, more than any other player in a single Serie A campaign (overtaken Law in 1961/62); before him, the last midfielder able to score 10+ goals in a single Big-5 campaign was Charlie Adam in 2010/11 (12, Blackpool). Royal. pic.twitter.com/CUQnQjF4J0
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo) April 27, 2025
Indeed, McTominay’s goal tally this campaign is the most of any Scottish player in Serie A in history, overtaking Denis Law’s 10 in 1960-61.
The last Scotland midfielder before McTominay to manage 10 or more goals in one campaign in Europe’s top five leagues was Charlie Adam, scoring 12 for Blackpool in the 2010-11 Premier League season.
This marks McTominay’s best scoring return in a single campaign across all competitions, with his 12 this term ahead of 10 in 2023-24 and seven in 2020-21 for Man Utd.
The former United man’s season could still end with silverware in Serie A, with Napoli leading the Scudetto race by three points, in stark contrast to the Red Devils’ issues.
Solskjaer guided United to second in the 2020-21 campaign, with McTominay one of his key players, but was sacked in October 2021.
“Man United is my family and will always be part of me,” he added.
“In football, you don’t feel sorry for anyone because we are privileged, absolutely 100% privileged to be able to work in clubs like this.
“But for me, it is hard to watch because it is your family that is struggling. It is never easy at the weekend when you look at the table.”
