Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: Chelsea sacking Frank Lampard surprised me – he’ll bounce back

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has backed Frank Lampard to have a „very good managerial career“ after being sacked by Chelsea, a decision the Manchester United boss admits surprised him.

The former England international and Derby County manager was sacked on Monday morning and is expected to be replaced by Thomas Tuchel.

​​​​Lampard leaves Chelsea with the club ninth in the Premier League table, five points off the Champions League places despite the club spending over £200m in the summer transfer window.

„One thing I know for sure is that Frank doesn’t want any of us to feel sorry for him,“ Solskjaer said ahead of his side’s Premier League match against Sheffield United on Wednesday.

„I know his character, mentality and I’m sure he’ll bounce back. He’ll have a very good managerial career. They just went through a little patchy period for a short spell, but it’s not long ago that they were top of the league.

„It’s the first dip of form they’ve really had under Frank, so I’m a little bit surprised, but it’s not my job to comment on what’s happened at Chelsea.“

On his own struggles earlier this season, Solskjaer added: „We knew we were going to have some rough and patchy periods and I had good backing from the club.

„The leadership has been very steady which I feel very grateful for because I’ve been through two or three bad spells of form.

„We don’t know what’s happening behind the scenes. It’s always sad when someone loses their job.“

Ole: No deal struck for Lingard yet
Solskjaer also revealed no agreement has been made for Jesse Lingard to move on loan this month but says there could still be some departures before the end of the transfer window.

West Ham and West Brom are interested in signing Lingard, who has not made a Premier League appearance since last July, on a temporary deal until the end of the season.

„No deal has been struck for any of our players yet,“ Solskjaer said. „There’s still a period of time left and there have been many clubs interested in our players, so let’s see what happens.

„For me, it’s also important to take our wishes and our plans into consideration, but also the wishes of the players of course, because they are Man Utd people through and through.“

Ole: Diallo not too far away
Timothy Fosu-Mensah recently joined Bayer Leverkusen and Odion Ighalo is set to leave United by the end of January as his loan deal from Shanghai Shenhua comes to a conclusion.

Youngster Facundo Pellistri could also be allowed to leave Old Trafford this month – but only on a temporary basis to continue his development.

„There have been talks and there have been quite a few clubs interested in Facundo to go out on loan and that’s maybe something we will let him do now,“ Solskjaer said.

„He’s had a few games in the reserves. We want him to have regular football, of course, at a high level.“

Eighteen-year-old talent Amad Diallo has bolstered United’s options after joining from Atalanta, and Solskjaer added: „With Amad, I think it’s a different scenario.

„He’s just come in, he’s going through a good training regime and he’s doing really well, so it won’t be too long I feel until I can bring him into the squad.“

Rashford available for Sheffield United clash
Marcus Rashford will be available for United’s Premier League clash with Sheffield United, Solskjaer confirmed.

The Red Devils head into the midweek fixtures top of the standings and buoyed by Sunday’s 3-2 FA Cup fourth-round win against Liverpool.

Rashford limped off with a knee complaint towards the end of that match, but Solskjaer says the forward is cleared for Wednesday’s game at Old Trafford.

„Marcus is available,“ he said. „He trained this morning so available for selection.

„I think he tweaked his knee a little bit but he should be fine. Trained fully this morning so we’re looking strong, which is a good place to be in.“

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