'They called': Man Utd icon shares truth on Rangers links and gives verdict on Scott McTominay
The Old Trafford legend was linked to the Rangers managerial role last month
Scotland talisman Scott McTominay could have starred in Sir Alex Ferguson’s legendary Manchester United squads of the early 2000s, says Ole Gunnar Solskjaer— who credits McTominay’s underrated qualities as the key to his success.
The 28-year-old midfielder ended his two decade association with the club in August 2024 when he completed a £27.5million move to Italian giants Napoli, signing alongside international teammate Billy Gilmour, and was named Serie A’s most valuable player after playing a key role in leading Antonio Conte’s side to the Scudetto.
Voted 18th in this year’s Ballon d’Or awards, the Scotland superstar struggled to nail down a regular starting spot during his time at Manchester United and opted to leave for pastures new last summer, sealing a move to the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, where he has flourished. Solskjaer, who managed McTominay between 2018 and 2021, believes it was the wrong decision to allow him to depart the club, as he opened up on the dressing room qualities the Scot brought to his side.
“He’s shown in Italy what a good player he is,” the Manchester United icon told the Stick To Football podcast. “I was almost shocked. You need a core of local lads who know the club, and get the club - and Scott did. He’s top, a great character, a personality you want in and around the place. He sets the standards.”
Asked by former Red Devil’s teammate and host of the podcast, Gary Neville, if he reminded him of 80-cap Scotland international and former Manchester United teammate Darren Fletcher, the 52-year-old said: “He’d survive when we played. He was voted Serie A player of the year last year, he won the title with Napoli. Scott is one of those players that you only know when you’ve got him in your squad, how good he is.
“Scott probably wasn’t allowed to play in his best position enough, because of Bruno [Fernandes] maybe, but also the lack of physicality and legs we had in midfield. You saw a couple of games against Leeds where we said ‘Scott, this is a man-to-man game, we’re going to have you running off your man, third man run, up back through’, and he scored two or three goals against [Marcelo] Bielsa’s Leeds. He’s one of the ‘eights’.
Solskjaer also opened up on his links to the Rangers manager’s role prior to the appointment of Danny Rohl, saying: “No, I didn’t speak to them. Me personally, I didn’t. They called my agent. I’m open. I’m not desperate to be back in, but I can be. I’m a football man, is it Norway, Sweden or wherever. It’s about working with people and I love making people trying to be the best version of myself.
“I like to defy the odds. That’s the way I’ve always been. We have a good [national] coach with Norway, but if he one days decides not to renew his contract - who wouldn’t love to work with Erling Haaland? When you talk about jobs, it is just a job and then you move on. That Man Utd one, I’ve been there for 18-and-half-years, then you’re done with it, which is a different kind of scenario. That was a kick, I thought we had something going. Now, I’ve moved on from that one. But it takes time.”
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