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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer faces his first real test as Manchester United boss when his side square up with Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, but the baby-faced assassin has an incredible record for the Red Devils against Spurs.
As a player, the Norwegian forward faced the Lilywhites on 13 occasions, and won a staggering ten of those, only slipping to two defeats at the hands of George Graham sides in 1998 and ’99.
Now, when Solskjaer takes to the Wembley dugout at the weekend, the current Red Devils manager will hope to maintain not only his incredible record as a player, but also that of the man in charge, having won each of his games since replacing Jose Mourinho.
The feel-good factor has ripped through Old Trafford, and with that in mind, here are five times Solskjaer got the better of Tottenham Hotspur…
Man Utd 2-0 Spurs, 29 September 1996
The baby-faced assassin had only just moved to England back in 1996, completing a switch from Molde, but that did not stop the then-23-year-old from stamping his mark on the English game.
It was Solskjaer’s eighth match for the Red Devils when Tottenham travelled to Old Trafford, and the forward swiftly sent Spurs packing with decisive strikes either side of half time.
Spurs 1-2 Man Utd, 12 January 1997
In a year that Newcastle mounted a sizeable challenge for the Premier League title, Manchester United had to regularly perform at the top of their game to stay ahead of the Tyneside club.
Without an early strike by Solskjaer when United travelled to North London, dropped points could have opened the door for the Magpies to creep in, but thankfully the Norwegian’s effort kick-started a 2-1 win, with David Beckham bagging the winner after Rory Allen equalised.
Spurs 2-2 Man Utd, 12 December 1998
During August 1998, Solskjaer came under transfer interest from the former White Hart Lane residents, but stayed put in red only to find his minutes on the field reduced.
Altogether, the 67-cap international only took to the field for a total of 19 occasions in the league, yet managed to make the difference against the side who chased his signature.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has caused a stir in Norway! Watch the video above to find out what we’re talking about…
A quick-fire double on the 11th and 18th minutes teed United up perfectly for another win. However, a late brace by Sol Campbell, including a stoppage-time strike, ensured points were split on this occasion.
Not that those two points made a difference when the season closed, though, with the Red Devils going on to clinch the Premier League title, along with the FA Cup and the Champions League trophy.
Man Utd 3-1 Spurs, 6 May 2000
In another triumphant season for the Red Devils, as Sir Alex Ferguson’s men went on to walk away with the Premier League title again – beating rivals Arsenal to the gong by 18-points – Solskjaer shared the spotlight with Beckham and Teddy Sheringham as Spurs were swept aside at Old Trafford.
The season was coming to a close and the title already wrapped up when the Lilywhites arrived in Manchester, but the Norwegian’s final goal of the campaign broke the deadlock against Glenn Hoddle’s backline.
Overall, the 67-cap international rounded the year with ten successful strikes in the league, and found the back of the net a further three times in all competitions.
Spurs 3-5 Man Utd, 29 September 2001
While Solskjaer did not personally find on this occasion, the Red Devils had a field day at White Hart Lane back in September 2001.
Spurs had easily been the better side in the opening 45 minutes, outplaying their opponents to hold a three-goal lead at the break, but an amazing comeback saw Ferguson’s men show their class and fire home five goals to turn the side completely on its head.
The transformed side that returned out of the tunnel dominated and presented a constant threat, with Andy Cole getting a foot on the ladder with his strike on the 46th minute. Laurent Blanc then pulled United within one, before Ruud van Nistelrooy and Juan Sebastian Veron’s quickfire double put their side ahead – Beckham rounded out the scoring three minutes from time.
The White Hart Lane faithful left stunned, as the scoring efforts of Dean Richards, Les Ferdinand, and Gus Poyet all laid to waste. Will that again be the case for Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen when Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford and David De Gea look to heap misery in London this Sunday?