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Defiant Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says he will continue to use young players despite “difficult transition” period

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says he will not shy away from giving opportunities to young players despite the team’s struggles this season.

The Red Devils are just two points above the relegation zone heading into Sunday’s meeting with Norwich at Carrow Road.

And the ex-Cardiff boss insists he will not change his policy despite acknowledging that United are going through a “difficult transition” period.

"You have to be brave. You have to trust your players and trust the kids," Solskjaer told Sky Sports.

"We need results as soon as possible. We need a result against Norwich. But then again we are in the situation we are.

"We made the decision to start the transition and that transition period has been difficult but I think the young kids are going to learn from it. You want to win, you want to win trophies and win in a certain style. But you also want to do it with young kids.

"That is the DNA we have. We do give young players a chance and you will not really know about them until you throw them into deep water and see if they can swim. Those boys so far have done really well.”

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Greg Lea

Greg Lea is a freelance football journalist who's filled in wherever FourFourTwo needs him since 2014. He became a Crystal Palace fan after watching a 1-0 loss to Port Vale in 1998, and once got on the scoresheet in a primary school game against Wilfried Zaha's Whitehorse Manor (an own goal in an 8-0 defeat).