Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: When the ‘Baby-Faced Assassin’ scored four times as a substitute for Manchester United against Nottingham Forest

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: When the ‘Baby-Faced Assassin’ scored four times as a substitute for Manchester United against Nottingham Forest
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer may be enjoying an unbeaten run in charge of Manchester United, but once upon a time, he was a lethal striker.A perennial substitute, Solskjaer would come off of the bench to great effect during his career at Old Trafford and proved himself extremely reliable at being an impact player.4

Solskjaer was regular on the United bench

20 years ago today, he did just that when he scored four times in 10 minutes to help United beat Nottingham Forest 8-1.talkSPORT.com remembers Solskjaer‘s performance. Moments earlier, the 67th minute to be exact, Dwight Yorke had netted his second of the match; United led, comfortably, 4-1.Solskjaer had been warming up, preparing to make his entrance, as he normally did. His role as super-sub was one he would become synonymous with. The ability to change a game, sense weakness among tiring opposition.Youre going to come on, Ole. Were winning 4-1 so theres no need to do anything stupid just keep the ball, Jim Ryan, the United first team coach, told him.4

United players celebrate after Solskjaer scores his first

It was Steve McClarens first game as assistant manager; he was pragmatic in his new role. Little was known about him when he took over from Brian Kidd. Chairman Martin Edwards introduced him as Steve McClaridge.On being told to approach the action with a sense of caution, Solskjaer said: Yeah, right! I had a chance to prove myself to the new assistant manager I was never going to just keep hold of the ball. To score four times was very special. Having replaced Yorke, his first came in the 80^th minute, a simple tap-in from a Gary Neville cross, driven low, with purpose, across the box.Forest were woeful, they had been all match. By now they were completely disorganised, their defence nowhere to be seen.Solskjaer lurked in a pocket of space, David Beckham played him in. An audacious chip failed to beat Dave Beasant, who was then wrong-footed as the Norwegian forward arrowed an angled drive into the top corner. The celebration was nonchalant.In stoppage time, he was found by Paul Scholes. Taking it with his left foot, the ball bounced kindly for his right. The finish was emphatic, a volley into the bottom corner. Hat-trick completed.4

The scoreboard at the City Ground reflects United’s dominance

Remarkably, both he and United were not done yet.A ball into the box from Nicky Butt was thrashed at by Scholes, the uncharacteristic miscue fell to Solskjaer who soon had a fourth. United left the City Ground with eight.18 minutes played, four goals. If ever there was a statement of intent, this was it.“I thought the finishing was magnificent. Solskjaer was amazing,” said Sir Alex Ferguson afterwards.“If I ever feel guilty about the teams I pick, it invariably centres around him. He really deserves better. But the fact is he is better than anyone else at the club as a substitute. He can come on and not be disturbed by it; he finds the flow easily.”The performance had earned Solskjaer a rare start for the FA Cup match against Fulham, he was substituted. His role on the bench, of course, was resumed for the Premier League clash with Arsenal.

Super sub Solskjaer scores four off the bench to make #PL history #PLMoments @ManUtd pic.twitter.com/Mj5bBTCZQv— Premier League (@premierleague) June 7, 2017

He actually made many more starts than substitute appearances over the course of his United career, and 97 of his 126 goals for the club came as a starter.Fast forward three months, and Solskjaer would make the most telling contribution of his career and perhaps in the history of the club.Coming on in the Champions League final, United were being outplayed by Bayern Munich, a goal down too.Teddy Sheringham, a substitute himself, equalised from a corner. In what would be a near replicate of the first goal, Solskjaer reacted quickest to put the ball into the roof of the net and make it 2-1.His place in United folklore cemented forever.4

He famously scored the winner in the 1999 Champions League final

That season, the man affectionately known as The Baby-Faced Assassin, would score 12 times in just 19 appearances, five of those coming from the bench. Four against Nottingham Forest.Ferguson attributed Solskjaer’s brilliance as a substitute to the fact that he watched intently from the bench.“Yes I do think I had an advantage of watching the game and thinking tactically, but the big thing was that I was mentally ready to come on, he told the Daily Mail in 2011.When I decided to stay at United I put my career in the gaffer’s hands: Do whatever you want with me, I’m always going to be ready. Other players don’t really have that in them.“Some players are too selfish and think, ‘if he’s not starting me I can’t be bothered.“I never had that sulk. I always felt privileged to have the career I had, just sitting behind the manager watching the game.”20 years ago, he proved he was more ready than ever.

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