Gabriel Agbonlahor has backed Manchester United to sack Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, predicting former Chelsea boss Antonio Conte as his successor.
During an interview with Football Insider, Gabriel Agbonlahor has dropped his verdict on Manchester United’s managerial conundrum. The Premier League giants are currently going through a major crisis after a run of just two wins in seven matches across all competitions, with a daunting fixture list awaiting them.
Manchester United’s struggles were further compounded by a thumping 5-0 defeat at the hands of Liverpool on Sunday. The embarrassing loss has put Ole Gunnar Solskjaer under pressure, with many experts across the footballing world calling for his departure.
Former Aston Villa forward Gabriel Agbonlahor has emerged as one of those critics. Speaking to Football Insider, the Englishman has criticised the Manchester United manager, predicting his downfall by the upcoming international break.
“Against Spurs, they could lose. Against Man City, they’ll lose. That international break is D-day for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, to be honest. Once that international break starts, he will lose his job,” he told Football Insider.
A former striker for Aston Villa with almost 400 competitive appearances, Agbonlahor further predicted Antonio Conte to replace Solskjaer. He believes that Manchester United will soon begin negotiations with the former Chelsea manager and appoint him at the start of the international break.
“He’s got until they negotiate with Conte. They’ll be negotiating with Conte now, and once he agrees to take the job, Solskjaer will be out,” he said.
Famously walking out after helping Inter Milan secure the Scudetto last season, Conte has indeed emerged as the front-runner to replace Solskjaer, at least according to widespread reports. However, many believe that his defence-oriented style could undo all of the progress made under Solskjaer over the past three years.
Agbonlahor, though, negated this thought and went on to further criticise the Norwegian while reinforcing his backing of former Chelsea boss Conte, stating, “It’s about time Man United have an elite manager and not one that is learning on the job.”
Manchester United, for now, have backed Solskjaer, at least for the upcoming game against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday. It could be a real litmus test for the former Cardiff City manager, and he will be hoping that his top players step up in an effort to guide the team back in the right direction.
