Solskjær can take heart from Manchester United’s upward curve | Jamie Jackson

Second place is not good enough for the manager but keeping leaders Manchester City in sight would be progress

Barring a Devon Loch-like collapse starting on Grand National weekend, Manchester City will canter to a third title in four years, but Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s second full season at rivals United has to show a continuation of the upward curve that began with last year’s third-place finish in the league. The United manager is in no mood to dress up a prospective second-place finish, conceding it may take “blood, sweat and tears” to close the gap on Manchester City next season.

Solskjær, whose United side travel to Tottenham on Sunday, says: “You can’t say that is an achievement. Our ambition is a lot more than second place. I said that when I wasn’t at the club – you can never be happy with that. Our ambition is to catch the team in front of us.”

Related: José Mourinho at odds with Ole Gunnar Solskjær over egos and trophies

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