Published 09:22 IST, December 18th 2020
Manchester United boss regrets going 'overboard', apologises to his Sheffield counterpart
Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has apologised to his Sheffield counterpart Chris Wilder after their verbal spat during Thursday's EPL game
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer recalled his ugly spat with his Sheffield counterpart Chris Wilder during their EPL clash at the Bramall Lane on Thursday night. Man United picked up a much-needed win but it was the verbal confrontation between both bosses in the heat of the moment that had stood out the most.
'It's one of these games': Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
The incident happened during the stoppage time as Sheffield were pushing for an equaliser as they were trailing by a goal and that is when Solskjaer reacted angrily to a late tackle on Rashford prompting a shouting match with counterpart Wilder. The fourth officials had to intervene before things were blown out of proportion.
"I don’t mind a fair tackle but there was a couple right in front of me. But it’s one of these games that these boys will learn from, it’s a proper game and it’s how football should be. I apologised, I went maybe overboard with a word but we’ll have a drink afterwards", said Solskjaer while speaking to Amazon Prime Video.
Meanwhile, Wilder on the other hand also told his side of the story and made things crystal clear with regards to the altercation.
"We have to be brave, we have to get up the pitch, we have to make contact with good players. That’s what I said to the manager (Solskjaer) at the end. We’re not going to just stand off you like we did against Southampton. We have to go and make contact with good players", he added.
"So to get that contact, whether it’s the midfield players or the front players or the back players, we have to get up the pitch, so we have to take chances and we did", he further added.
A narrow win for the 'Red Devils'
The 'Red Devils' escaped with a narrow win by a 3-2 margin. They were kept at bay throughout the contest by a determined Sheffield outfit. The 'Blades' drew first blood when the Irish striker David McGoldrick scored the opener in the fifth minute.
Nonetheless, Man United came back strongly with twin goals from English forward Marcus Rashford in the 26th and 51st minutes respectively as French forward Anthony Martial had also chipped in with one goal in the 33rd minute as well. However, they were given a scare in the 87th minute when David McGoldrick once again succeeded in finding the back of the net.
In the end, the Harry Maguire-led side ensured that the opposition did not score an equaliser during the stoppage time as they registered a much-needed win. The win has now helped the United leapfrog to the sixth position from ninth with seven wins from 12 matches and 23 points in their tally. Whereas, the 'Blades' on the other hand continue to languish at the bottom without even winning a single match from the 13 games that they have played so far with just a solitary point.
Updated 09:22 IST, December 18th 2020