Man Utd boss Solskjaer inspired by Johan Cruyff’s methods during lockdown as he plots top four charge

OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER was told by the great Johan Cruyff about the importance of mental health in football. And he will keep the words of the Dutch master in mind as he guides his Manchester United players back to football. The Old Trafford boss knows the last three months without football will have taken their […]

OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER was told by the great Johan Cruyff about the importance of mental health in football.

And he will keep the words of the Dutch master in mind as he guides his Manchester United players back to football.

The Old Trafford boss knows the last three months without football will have taken their toll on his squad.

So he went from coach to life-coach during regular chats with his United stars who were stuck at home.

He would chat about their families and even their cooking skills to ensure they were keeping their spirits up in lockdown.

Solskjaer said: “I’m a big fan of Johan Cruyff — his son, Jordi, who played for United, was a great friend of mine.

“I was honoured to meet Johan a few times. He said football is 90 per cent in the head and ten per cent in the feet.

“If your mental health is not good, there’s no way you can perform.

“And I like to coach the whole person. It’s about life skills, how their life is, how’s their family in lockdown, how are you eating, are you cooking?

“All the little things that make the players feel valued, so they know we care about them. If they’re not mentally happy they won’t be able to perform.

“We are caring — people’s people — that’s why I have the staff I have. I want them to reflect me. Maybe ask the players if that’s true.

“But the club has been unbelievable during all of this, looking after everyone, all the staff, supporters.

“They’ve all been very active in the community. Players like Maguire, Rashford, Lingard, Pogba doing different things to make a bit of a difference to people.

“I look for a good personality in players and that they are professional. One rotten apple in the basket will make the others rotten as well.

“It’s about building a team that reflects me and my coaching staff — although we have standards. We want to win, we are in the business to win.”

As well as chatting to his players during the lockdown, Solskjaer also tried his hand at home-schooling his three children.

Yet he admits he was not sorry to hand responsibility back to his wife, Silje, as being a football manager is much easier.

He added: “As a coach you are a teacher but it’s more difficult with the kids, especially with topics you don’t really know yourself.

He said football is 90 per cent in the head and ten per cent in the feet. If your mental health is not good, there’s no way you can perform.

Solskjaer on Cruyff

“Some of them have been difficult so I’ve relied very much on my wife as well.

“I’m decent at maths and some science, some of it I’ve been doing.”

Solskjaer has been watching some of the German football since it returned and it has whetted his appetite to get back to Premier League action.

His team were in a great run of form — 11 games unbeaten in all competitions — before the season was halted in early March and he hopes they can pick up where they left off.

Solskjaer said: “I think you are going to see a good Man United. Everyone will be raring to go and wanting to prove we can carry on that good run we were on.

“I’d had enough of watching our old games and analysing them. It was great to see the German football back.

“It’s a sterile environment, different. The fans do give you an extra edge and there’s less atmosphere.

“There’s less yellow cards, less fans on top of the refs and outside noise. I think looking at them, maybe even more goals.”

United are due to return to action at Tottenham on Friday week when he will be up against predecessor Jose Mourinho.

One thing Solskjaer is looking forward to is telling another former manager, Alex Ferguson, what team he is going to pick. He added: “I still have so much respect for him but now I can tell him what team I’m picking and he has to agree.

“I keep in touch with the manager, texting him. He’s the one we owe so much to. I used to play for him, you felt in awe, wanting to do your best.

“He had a great skill in being one of us — playing cards on the bus, but still we had that respect. There was a fear factor, of proving to him we were good enough to play in his team.

“I’ve learned everything I know about management. I learned about becoming a winner, how to be hungry, to look for more, improve and get better.”

Another thing Solskjaer did during the lockdown was watch the Michael Jordan documentary ‘The Last Dance’ on Netflix.
And he will be trying to instil some of what he saw in his United players in the weeks ahead.

Solskjaer said: “What a fantastic professional — but also so talented and a leader to push his players. It’s a fascinating watch. Hunger. You never settle you always want to improve until you can’t do anymore.”

Solskjaer was talking on a podcast for the Shiv Navar Foundation in India — a country United were looking to visit this summer.

He said: “I’ve not been privileged enough to visit India but I’d love to bring the team and play a game over there. That’d be great.”