'Solskjaer does not want to kill Manchester United', says Rafael

Rafael defended Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s approach in transfers and insists the manager isn’t trying to ruin Manchester United.

Solskjaer led United to only their third top-four finish in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era last season with a respectable third-place, albeit 33 points behind Premier League champions Liverpool.

The Norwegian welcomed several new faces to the fold for his first full campaign at the helm last term, including Bruno Fernandes and Harry Maguire. But while these additions to the squad have paid off handsomely, he hasn’t been as active in the current transfer window.

Ajax playmaker Donny van de Beek is the only recruit to arrive at Old Trafford this summer. And with only a week before the transfer deadline, United’s hopes of signing another player appear bleak.

The pressure to deliver one more high-profile signing, therefore, grows on Solskjaer by each passing day. Several pundits, including former teammate Rio Ferdinand, have urged him to sign a center-back.

But Rafael believes Solskjaer is making a smart move by not doing any panic buys and instead focusing on players that will make an impact.

The former Red Devils full-back told The Athletic: “Now it is better than before.

“But there are still some games where you watch and think, ‘f*cking hell — what’s happened?’ Even the first game of the season, you sit and say, ‘f*cking hell,’ but it is the first game. If Ferguson, after everything he won, lost the first game of a season, people would talk but not in the same way.

“Now it (the reaction) is all, ‘everything is sh*t, we need to change the coach.’ It is all a bit harsh. It is the first game – relax. Of course, we need to get better. People don’t care if the players only had one pre-season game to prepare. They just say, ‘Ole out, f*cking hell, why don’t you buy these players?’

“That’s what I don’t understand. Of course, we need some players but last season, we finished winning nearly every game. The team was growing together. Now, you listen to people and it is as though if we don’t buy players, we will lose every game.

“I want United to be back winning again. I like Ole and the way he works. I am not saying he is the best manager in the world but he is doing his job in a way it used to be done before.

“I know a lot of supporters will not agree with me about this but people need to know that Ole does not want to kill Manchester United.

“He wants to buy players but in the right way. He does not want to buy just for buying’s sake, like we did for five or six years.”