The eight remaining Man Utd players Solskjaer managed before and what their futures hold | OneFootball

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is a contender to take charge of Manchester United again for the rest of the season, but what happens next for the handful of players he’d be reuniting with?

Solskjaer previously served as Man Utd‘s caretaker manager from December 2018 and performed well enough to earn the permanent job by the following March. However, after a turbulent tenure from that point on, his reign ended in November 2021 – and without a trophy to his name.

Since then, his only other managerial stint has been an eight-month spell in charge of Besiktas, which ended in August.

Four years since he left United, they still have six players in their current squad – and two out on loan – who Solskjaer worked with during his time at the club.

The prospect of Solskjaer returning to United, even on a temporary basis, makes it as good a time as ever to examine what the future holds for those players.

Luke Shaw

United’s longest-serving player and one of two to pre-date Solskjaer’s original spell as manager, Shaw is now 30 and will enter the final year of his contract come the summer.

In recent months, he has reinvented himself as a left-sided centre-back, rather than the full-back he made his name as.

Shaw’s career, which has been impacted by injuries, is winding down and United are unlikely to get anything near the £30m fee they paid Southampton for him in 2014.

With that in mind, any benefits of a departure for Shaw would be linked to reducing the wage bill.

Little has been reported of United’s intentions over Shaw’s future, nor of any interested parties, but if he can enjoy a stable second half of the season under the guidance of a familiar manager, he may get the chance to see out his contract by staying next season too.

United loaned Dalot out to AC Milan under Solskjaer’s watch, in between 36 appearances for his parent club during their time together. Since then, the full-back has risen in prominence at Old Trafford, surpassing the milestone of 200 appearances for the club in total.

Dalot has a contract until 2028, which means an assessment of his future might not be too far around the corner.

The versatile 26-year-old has faced some pressure after his recent performances and risks being sold in the summer if he doesn’t raise his game over the second half of the season.

Despite what should be his prime years approaching, Dalot’s value could decline over the next couple of transfer windows if United don’t extend his contract – and they are somewhat hesitant to do that at the moment, especially if it would entail a payrise.

Real Madrid hold long-term interest in Dalot, sources have confirmed, and they are joined as potential suitors by Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich.

Harry Maguire

Signed on Solskjaer’s watch in 2019 after two seasons with Leicester City, Maguire became the most expensive centre-back in the world at the time.

His form has experienced ups and downs ever since, with that record status sometimes looking laughable at his lowest, but Maguire has stabilised at this stage of his career.

Out of contract at the end of the season, Maguire has been out since November with thigh problems, but is about ready to return. It gives him a window of opportunity to fight for a new deal, which – given he turns 33 in March – would surely have to be on lower wages than his current £190,000-per-week deal and on a short-term basis.

Sources confirmed in November that Maguire’s contract situation was becoming a priority and they have been expecting to find an agreement on his new terms.

Bruno Fernandes

Fernandes’ future is going to be a huge topic for United in 2026, as his contract approaches its final year. He already overlooked Saudi interest in the summer, but expect more speculation over whether he stays or goes this time around.

United’s captain was immediately influential after signing for Solskjaer’s United in January 2020, but at the age of 31, they will now be weighing up how much more they can get out of him.

That’s a tactical question as much as an age question, after doubts were raised over the role Ruben Amorim was using him in over the final few weeks of his reign.

If used in his best role and made the centrepiece of United’s creative department, Fernandes can remain one of their standout players.

But realistically, United could take their last real chance of recouping a good fee for someone who remains one of their most marketable players. It feels 50-50 at the moment and will depend on their next permanent manager’s plans, but they might just go their separate ways in the summer.

Amad Diallo

Most likely scenario: Stay

Amad was effectively an alternative to the more high-profile Jadon Sancho, who United failed to sign from Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2020 despite a concerted effort.

Arriving as a teenager from Atalanta in January 2021 – half a year before United finally got their hands on Sancho – Amad was only used eight times by Solskjaer, including twice as a starter.

But he has actually gone on to have a far better outlook for a long-term career at Old Trafford than Sancho.

Last season was a breakthrough spell for the Ivory Coast international, which led to him signing a new long-term contract last January.

Scheduled to stay until 2030, by which point he’ll be hoping to be in his prime towards the age of 28, Amad would take on a far more important role than before if he was to reunite with Solskjaer for the next few months of that journey.

Tom Heaton

Most likely scenario: Retirement

Heaton has served as United’s third-choice goalkeeper since a few months before Solskjaer was sacked, never making an appearance under the Norwegian but subsequently featuring a handful of times between the Ralf Rangnick and Erik ten Hag reigns.

His contract is up in the summer, by which point he will have turned 40. Much will depend on his intentions, but retirement could be looming.

If not, United may find worth in keeping him around as a mentoring figure to their more active goalkeepers, as they have in recent years.

Ending his career altogether looks more likely at this stage, though.

Marcus Rashford

Solskjaer was the coach Rashford played and scored the most for during his United career, which has since taken a sour turn or two.

Now on loan at Barcelona after ending last season on loan with Aston Villa, the chances of Rashford returning to United – where he had previously spent his entire career – look bleak.

Indeed, his preference would be to make his move to Barcelona – where he has scored seven goals from 25 games so far, as well as providing 11 assists – permanent.

Linking up with Solskjaer again might be something Rashford would enjoy, but given the plans are strictly for him to be an interim manager until the end of this season, that would require interrupting his Barcelona spell, which is the opposite of what Rashford wants.

Jadon Sancho

Once the long-term target United thought they were going to build around, Sancho now has next to no chance of playing for them again after his loan at Aston Villa.

He’s not even getting much of a look in for Villa themselves, meaning United may have to seek a new solution for him in the summer.

Sancho’s contract is coming towards its conclusion and, despite the massive loss they face on his transfer fee, United have little incentive to keep him.