EX-MANCHESTER UNITED forward Giuseppe Rossi has praised Ole Gunnar Solskjaer for his immediate impact at the club since being installed as caretaker boss.
The 31-year-old has been training with his former club after being invited back last week, as he continues to look for a new club as a free agent, having left Genoa last summer.
Rossi came through the ranks at youth level at Old Trafford before securing a switch to Villarreal in 2007, but his career since then has been blighted by a string of injuries and fitness issues.
Solskjaer offered him the chance to return to where it all began and he has been working on his finishing and overall fitness with the current United squad as they prepare for a home clash against Brighton on Saturday — although he confirmed they won’t be resigning the US-born striker.
The Norwegian head coach has had a dream start at the helm, winning all six of his games so far, with the team now within six points of fourth place in the Premier League table.
Rossi has been impressed by what he has seen from his old team-mate and has credited him with restoring the team’s identity after their nightmare start to the 2018-19 campaign.
“It’s not an easy task to come to Manchester United, taking over in such a very critical part of the season and he’s been doing amazing,” Rossi said.
“He brought back the Manchester United way, he brought back the tranquillity that maybe this environment needed.
“You’ve just got to tip your hat off to him and his coaching staff that have done just an amazing job.”
Giuseppe Rossi is training with Manchester United.
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) January 14, 2019
And he's already impressed Sir Alex Ferguson... pic.twitter.com/wOQ9H2SNj2
The one-time Italy international has been keeping up admirably in training, with former boss Alex Ferguson even taking in a trip to Carrington to witness his progress.
Rossi praised Ferguson ‘as the best manager who ever lived’, before adding:
“I had breakfast with him at Carrington the other day. We were talking and talking and he still remembers the transfer fee when I got sold.
Just think about it: It was 11 years ago and in that 11-year span there have been hundreds of transfer fees and he still remembered my transfer fee when I went to Villarreal.
“It’s great to see him in high spirits and great to see him just being about here on the football field.”
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Hardly world beaters, especially going forward
@COYBIG: two evenly matched teams tomorrow so
I think travelling to Georgia will affect them. It’s a long journey. We have a chance.
@prop joe: good pt. I had not considered that. I think we will beat them.
Havent lost to these since 92. No Bale wine rate since 2012 is 9%.
Believe
Coybig
We will beat this shower tomorrow COYBIG! The welsh think the only have to turn up to beat us!
Whats the team photo about?
@Jane: It’s something Wales have been doing for a couple of years now as a bit of a joke, they deliberately take terrible team photos. Go back through all their qualifiers and you’ll see some with one player kneeling and the rest standing, and the opposite. Leaving gaps like that etc. No idea what it’s about.
@Eanna Costello: I’d never noticed it before, thanks
@Eanna Costello: I think they did one bad photo by mistake and just kept it going then for a laugh
@Jane:
More examples here. It’s gas really.
https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2017/1008/910725-the-wonders-of-the-wales-team-photo-what-is-going-on/
Seems like you guys think you have this in the bag already.
To put some perspective here – Wales have lost 3 games since 2013 when Bale wasn’t playing. Two of those were friendlies when other players including Ramsey were also not available, and the other one was after we’d already qualified for the Euros.
We haven’t lost a game since the 2016 Euros Semi final, we’ve kept a clean sheet for the last 3 games which we won, and tomorrow night we’re playing at home.
So despite the dismissive remarks above, Wales may pull off a huge upset.
@Saul Hamilton Evans: “not world beaters” “evenly matched” “we have a chance”. How is that us thinking its in the bag or dismissive of Wales? I think nearly all Irish fans thinks Wales are favourites but as said above, we go to Cardiff with a chance.
@Paul P O’Sullivan: is focain bómán é.
He’s a clown