'Petty' - Ole Gunnar Solskjaer takes aim at 'Gen Z' former Man Utd players over 'lack of ambition'

Former United striker Solskjaer spent almost three years at the helm of the Old Trafford side before his sacking in November 2021 and has reiterated issues he had with many of the team's younger stars. He says many players refused to deliver bad news to him directly and did not want to speak to the media after games, as he chalked it up to a generational issue.

He said on the Stick to Football podcast: "No one said: ‘No’ to being the club captain, it was just for certain games – ‘I don’t want to be captain for this match’.

"They didn’t want to say it themselves, they had other people come up to me and say it. It was disappointing. It’s a different generation, it’s Gen Z. It’s petty and shows a lack of ambition."

The Norwegian also revealed many players were reluctant to do post-match interviews, adding: "Many players said no to doing the pre-match interviews, the three questions. You had the go-tos, Bruno [Fernandes] always did it, Harry [Maguire] always did it, Victor [Lindelof] did it, David [de Gea] did it, Luke Shaw did it. The others were worried about the questions, so preferred not to do it. You’re scared of the whole reaction maybe, but you also understand some of the players’ mental health."

Over his spells as caretaker and then permanent manager, Solskjaer oversaw 168 games with the Red Devils, winning 92 of those. After replacing Jose Mourinho at the helm in December 2018, he guided them to a sixth-place finish in the Premier League. They finished third the following year and then second behind Manchester City in 2020-21. He was sacked the following November.

Now managed by Dutch coach Erik ten Hag, the 2023-24 campaign has been a struggle for Solskjaer's former team. They currently sit sixth in the Premier League and are pushing for a top-four finish, though they are now 11 points away from the Champions League places.