Solskjaer to blame if Manchester United don’t challenge for Premier League title: Matic

Nemanja Metic. (Photo: Instagram/@nemanjamatic)


Serbian defensive midfielder Nemanja Matic has said that he has no problem with Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer but in case United fail to challenge for the Premier League title, it is Solskjaer who would be responsible for the failure.

Matic, an unused substitute in the opening three Premier League matches of the Red Devils, got only the final 22 minutes to play in United’s 1-1 draw at Southampton. Moreover, with Solskjaer preferring a central midfield duo of Paul Pogba and Scott McTominay, 31-year-old’s future is into doubt.

Speaking ahead of Serbia’s Euro 2020 qualifier against Portugal on Saturday, Matic – who arrived from Chelsea in 2017 – told reporters: “In the first two or three games he determined the team without me.

“I work as hard as I can, we respect the decision, it is up to me to show him that he was wrong and to bring me back to where I belong.”

“There is no problem. I told him I disagreed with him, but that he had to decide the team,” Matic said, adding, “I have been in football for a long time, I have played almost all the games for all the clubs in the last 10 years. In order for me to play, one had to sit on the bench and accept that fact, and so do I now. The coach must opt for the team that will fight for the title, and if he does not win, he bears the responsibility.”

Matic is preparing to make his first Serbia appearance since the country’s 2-1 win over Montenegro in the UEFA Nationals League in November 2018.