Ole Gunner Solskjaer has admitted that confidence is running sky high in his Manchester United players as they continued their unbeaten run on the domestic front with a 3-2 win over Southampton at Old Trafford.
Manchester United started the game on the front foot and created a couple of quick opportunities in the first ten minutes. Southampton goalkeeper Angus Gunn did well to deny Romelu Lukaku, twice, and Andreas Pereira in the initial minutes.
But the away side grew into the game and started to put pressure on the Manchester United defence with some incisive football. The Saints shocked Old Trafford when they took the lead when young French full-back Yan Valery scored a scorching goal in the 26th minute.
Manchester United continued to create chances and did put the Southampton defence under duress for the rest of the half. But players such as Lukaku and Marcus Rashford failed to provide the final flourish to breach Gunn’s goal. Chris Smalling also got close to getting on the scoresheet towards the end of the first half when his header just crept wide of the post.
However, Southampton managed to go into the break 1-0 up and in with a good chance to take an unlikely result away from Old Trafford.
Rashford missed with a header just after half-time but the goal came. Andreas Pereira found a little space inside the final third and found the top left-hand corner with a sumptuous strike from outside the penalty box to equalise for Manchester United in the 53rd minute.
Just five minutes later the Brazilian’s toe-poke found Lukaku inside the box and he shifted the ball onto his right foot to find the bottom left-hand corner of Gunn’s goal to give the lead to Manchester United.
But there was another twist in the tale when James Ward-Prowse equalised against the run of play from a free-kick outside the box in the 75th minute to send shockwaves through Old Trafford.
However, Manchester United pushed hard and found the goal they needed for the three points in the final few minutes. Lukaku latched onto a loose ball just outside the penalty box and unleashed a right-footed shot that found its way past Gunn’s outstretched hands and into the bottom left-hand corner.
And the home side got an opportunity to add gloss to the scoreline. Stuart Armstrong fouled Rashford inside the box in stoppage time but Paul Pogba missed from the spot when Gunn’s trailing leg saved the goal-bound shot.
Manchester United managed to hold onto the lead and moved into fourth place in the league table. They are now just three points behind Tottenham at third.
Solskjaer feels his side could have put the game to bed in the first few minutes with the chances they created, but is delighted to see the way they came back into the game in the second half.
He praised Lukaku for showing his qualities as a finisher and admits that his side managed to win the three points in the hardest way possible by scoring a late goal.
The Manchester United boss told the BBC: "It was one of those games, it had everything. It was an open game and they came here to beat us.
“We should have been 1-0, 2-0 up in the first five minutes. They settled down and scored with two unbelievable strikes. My team did fantastic and the boys did great in the second half.
"The belief is there, they have gone so long without losing games [domestically] and are raring to go.
"They want to get on the ball and the confidence is high.
"They were class finishes from Romelu Lukaku and I am so pleased for Andreas Pereira.
"Rom is a goalscorer, he keeps practising every single day and has quality.
"When we changed to two up front that helped him as well.
"We had some great play at times, 3-2 we did it the hard way. That's why we are turning grey.”
Manchester United have a mountain to climb in their Champions League last 16 tie after PSG beat them at Old Trafford 2-0 last month in the first leg.
But Solskjaer has insisted that the club’s history is laced with great comeback wins and he stressed that the tie is far from over.
"We have done fantastically well away from home but we go to PSG with the belief, we have nothing to lose.
"We will give it a go. This club has done so many great comebacks, the tie is not done.
"The dressing room is bouncing at the moment."
