Ronaldo comparison is deflective nonsense from Solskjaer amid Man Utd chaos

"Of course Cristiano is a leader in the group but that's what he does, he scores goals," declared Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the wake of another injury-time rescue act from Cristiano Ronaldo.

"He does provide those moments and I'm sure the Chicago Bulls didn't mind having Michael Jordan either.

"Sometimes teams have the players they have and that's why they are Manchester United, that's why they are champions at the Chicago Bulls. You just come up with those moments."

Solskjaer's comparison between the five-time Ballon d'Or and five-time Champions League winner and arguably the greatest player in the history of the NBA, coming after United's Champions League group stage draw against Atalanta, isn't without its merits.

Ronaldo and Jordan have been dominant forces in their respective sports, both creating legacies based on outworking their peers and coming up clutch when their teams most need them.

However, Solskjaer's declaration is also, right now, an absolute farce.

Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo with manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after the 2-2 draw with Atalanta ( Image:

REUTERS)

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Both men are champions, no doubt. Both have dragged their teammates to results seemingly through sheer force of will, fortitude and their own painstakingly worked upon talent.

While Jordan was surrounded by a team with a clearly identifiable structure, an A-grade coach, and was proving decisive in Championship games, Ronaldo's surroundings are little more than a thrown together group of talented yet under-performing individuals, where his undeniable brilliance is masking their collective malaise.

Jordan was elevating those around him to titles, Ronaldo is currently dragging an illogical, seemingly untrained mess into a position where it isn't merely on the verge of embarrassment.

There's been an attempt to change the narrative around Manchester United in the wake of the 5-0 destruction by Liverpool into one which suggests he is the centre of the club's problems. That, simply, has never been the case.

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The issue with Ronaldo's arrival - combined with that of Raphael Varane and £73million Jadon Sancho - was that it took a team boasting potential and who could look to improve again firmly into "win-now" mode; Solskjaer's margin for error, and that of his team, became infinitely smaller.

Ronaldo has undoubtedly stepped up and is playing his part, leading by example. But those around him, collectively, have not.

Not least his manager, who it's universally felt isn't in the class of the elite coaches - Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola and Thomas Tuchel - against whom he is expected to challenge in the Premier League title race.

He's shown his ability to outwit them in one off matches in recent seasons, but when he needs to launch a sustained attack to end United's eight-year wait for a 21st title, where his margin for error week-on-week has been reduced, he looks incapable of keeping up the relentless pace required.

Solskjaer has been the subject of intense scrutiny and fierce analysis and insisted in Bergamo on Monday: "I've always enjoyed criticism, keep that coming, it's fine."

By Tuesday night, that tone had somewhat shifted after a display described by Paul Scholes as "all over the place", as he declared: "I commit a crime every time I pick a team because there are always players that get left out."

It was said with a smile, but was very 'woe is me' from the Norwegian at a time when his side have unquestionably gone backwards.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer saw his side put in another poor display, with pressure over his position set to intensify once more ( Image:

Getty Images)

Increasingly porous defensively, unsure of when to press, when to sit off and of the distances required between the lines both laterally and vertically, they're giving up chances at an alarming rate. They rank 14th in the Premier League for xG against, 11th for goals conceded.

Harry Maguire, £80million worth of club captain, spoke post Liverpool of looking at himself and being better, but in Italy, at the first sign of adversity - victory over Nuno's dismal Tottenham doesn't count - produced perhaps his worst individual display in a red shirt. Both he and Luke Shaw look shadows of the pair who shone for England in the summer, within a working defensive structure.

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Harry Maguire endured a nightmare night, personally, in Italy ( Image:

Getty Images)

With the ball, they're set up to dominate possession but can't do it consistently - condemning them to prolonged periods without it - especially when Paul Pogba is at his giving-the-ball-away worst. Nor do they appear to counter-attack with the same ruthless vigour which was something of a hallmark last season. Between then and now that's been lost, the question is why? Surely it's not by design.

But what is the design? What are Solskjaer's side trying to do? Guardiola sticks out 11 players at City and, whoever they are, you know how City will play. Similarly with Klopp and Tuchel at Anfield and Stamford Bridge respectively.

But United? Never mind one game to the next, you don't know what you're going to get one half to the next, or even every 10 minutes. Such a lack of coherence would usually be damning for a manager and his staff, but not with this United hierarchy ownership and boardroom structure.

Thankfully for Solskjaer, there is no shortage of work ethic and United still have players capable of producing the kind of quality you expect from the Premier League's highest wage bill, which inevitably pulls them, and him, out of the mire on a regular enough basis, meaning they win more than they lose and the week-to-week chaos and crisis never quite reaches code red, but neatly remains in amber, just below the break glass in case of emergency line.

And there's no doubt Solskjaer and United can keep banking on Ronaldo to continue to produce great moments, just like Jordan did. His legacy will continue to grow.

Yet while Jordan's inevitably led to him and his teammates lifting trophies aloft, Ronaldo's latest attempts aren't going to lead to similar amid so much uncertainty and chaos.

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