Last night’s one nil defeat to Barcelona in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals gave newly hired manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer his fourth loss in his last five games.
Manchester United arguably outplayed the Catalan side. The Red Devil defense contained Barcelona’s attackers, forcing them to rush play in middle of the field. However, it only took one moment of magic from a deft Lionel Messi pass to Luis Suarez in the 12th minute to give the Blaugrana the lead.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer remained optimistic about a comeback in the second-leg: “The PSG performance away gives us hope and belief we can do it. But we know we are playing against probably the favorites in the tournament. Going to the Nou Camp is going to be a challenge. It would be a greater achievement.”
🗣 Ole on last night’s #UCL defeat against @FCBarcelona
🎥: @HaytersTV pic.twitter.com/Fm9FD5oKhp
— OneFootball HQ (@OneFootballHQ) April 11, 2019
Is there another Manchester United Champions League miracle in the works?
Beating Barcelona at Nou Camp is a Herculean task, having gone 30 games unbeaten in Champions League matches at home. Manchester United will have to consider reapplying its 3-5-2 formation but get more shots on goal — they had zero at Old Trafford.
Paul Pogba also looks forward to a second-leg rematch: “We believe we can beat them. We are Manchester United, even if they are Barcelona – we are Manchester United, and we play in the Champions League just like they do.”
Confidence is one thing; luck is another. Yet given Solskjaer‘s history as a Man United player at Nou Camp, anything is possible.