Dan James offers the X-factor for Manchester United, says Red Devils manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
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ByEurosport
Updated 21/02/2021 at 23:05 GMT
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer praised winger Daniel James and said he was confident a winning run would give his players the energy to get through a tough schedule after a 3-1 Premier League win over Newcastle United on Sunday. United remain 10 points adrift of Manchester City in the table.
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Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer praised Daniel James, saying the speedy winger offers an X-factor for Manchester United.
United followed up the 4-0 Europa League win over Real Sociedad on Thursday with a patchy performance against Newcastle on Sunday, their goals coming from individual quality amid some shaky defending.
Marcus Rashford opened the scoring for the Red Devils, but they were pegged back by goal from Allan Saint-Maximin.
With injuries to the likes of Paul Pogba, Donny van de Beek and Scott McTominay, James was handed a rare start and he scored the second goal in the 3-1 win over the Magpies.
The game was still in the balance when Joe Willock brought down Rashford in the box and Bruno Fernandes tucked away the penalty.
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Dan James celebrates
Image credit: Getty Images
The Red Devils boss was happy with how his side coped with the quick turnaround from the Sociedad game, and was thrilled for James.
"Dan with the energy he has, the X-factor and the pace, he gives us something that must be hard to play against if you are a defender," Solskjaer told the BBC.
"He is working hard, he is a great boy in and around the place. He knows he has been very close a few times. When you score the amount of goals he has at the moment confidence must be sky high.
"Dan came from the Championship up to Man United and if you hit a few goals in your first few games, it's bound to take some energy away from you, all those headlines and media attention. But he's knuckled down and he's really worked hard to get back to full fitness and maybe more so [to build] confidence, to believe in himself.
"That's the main thing, to come past that little doubt, and now he knows he's a good player.”
Following the return leg against Real Sociedad on Thursday, United visit Chelsea, Crystal Palace and Manchester City in their next three Premier League games.
Solskjaer is hopeful victories will give his players confidence for the testing period ahead.
He said: "Momentum? Just keep going. You have to be relentless. The season is a strange one but you have to build on confidence. We have to recover well in between and I am sure they will because when you win games you get energy."
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