MX23RW : Thursday, November 7 17:34:35| >> :60:866:866:

Is Solskjaer's start at Manchester United the best in Premier League history?

Is Solskjaer's start at Manchester United the best in Premier League history?
© Reuters
The Norwegian has overseen six league wins from six.

Victory for Manchester United on Saturday saw interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer join an elite Premier League club.

The Red Devils have won their first six league games under the Norwegian, putting him level with Carlo Ancelotti and Pep Guardiola for the longest winning run after taking charge of a Premier League club.

Here, Press Association Sport compares the trio.

Carlo Ancelotti, Chelsea 2009-10

Soccer – Barclays Premier League – Chelsea v Wigan Athletic – Stamford Bridge
Carlo Ancelotti was a Premier League winner in his first season at Chelsea (Nick Potts/PA)

Ancelotti's Chelsea had a favourable opening run of league fixtures but beat Hull, Sunderland, Fulham, Burnley and Stoke, a run book-ended by injury-time winners, before adding a 3-0 win over Tottenham.

Wigan ended the run by inflicting Ancelotti's first league defeat, in his 10th game in charge in all competitions. The Blues had also beaten Porto in the Champions League and QPR in the League Cup having opened Ancelotti's reign by winning the Community Shield, albeit on penalties against United.

They went on to win the Premier League and FA Cup double but Ancelotti lasted only one more season in charge.

Pep Guardiola, Manchester City 2016-17

The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss began his reign in England with 10 wins in all competitions, though the first required a Sergio Aguero penalty and a late Paddy McNair own goal to see off Sunderland.

A 5-0 Champions League win away to Steaua Bucharest and a 4-1 league success at Stoke proved more indicative of things to come, while a derby win over United and back-to-back 4-0 wins over Borussia Monchengladbach and Bournemouth provided further highlights.

Celtic eventually ended the run in a 3-3 Champions League draw and City failed to win a trophy, finishing third in the league before winning the title the following season.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Manchester United 2018-19

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer acknowledges the Manchester United fans
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has won his first seven games with United (John Walton/PA)

Taking over after the lacklustre end to Jose Mourinho's reign, the former United forward has revitalised the team – albeit aided by a friendly fixture list.

A 5-1 rout of his former club Cardiff set the stage, with Huddersfield, Bournemouth and Newcastle also dispatched before United edged out Tottenham 1-0 in their first big test on January 13.

A 2-1 win over Brighton made it six, with an FA Cup success over Reading along the way. The latter competition may be Solskjaer's best chance of silverware this season, with United still sixth in the league and 16 points behind leaders Liverpool.

ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Tom White, Press Association Sport Data Journalist');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', '6cc1ad30-b942-4daa-952d-16ffb22cf6a9');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:club-news,paservice:sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Is Solskjaer\u2019s start at Manchester United the best in Premier League history?'});

ID:347475: cacheID:347475:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:8751:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Joao Felix pictured in December 2018
Read Next:
Manchester United 'scout Joao Felix'
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool108111961325
2Manchester CityMan City1072121111023
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest10541147719
4Chelsea105322012818
5Arsenal105321711618
6Aston Villa105321715218
7Tottenham HotspurSpurs1051422111116
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton104421714316
9Fulham104331413115
10Bournemouth104331312115
11Newcastle UnitedNewcastle104331010015
12Brentford104151920-113
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd10334912-312
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham103251319-611
15Leicester CityLeicester102441418-410
16Everton102351017-79
17Crystal Palace10145813-57
18Ipswich TownIpswich100551021-115
19Southampton10118719-124
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves100371427-133


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!