Manchester United's caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer reflected on his spell as a player at Old Trafford to explain striker Romelu Lukaku's current role within the squad, insisting that the Belgian will have opportunities despite starting just one match since José Mourinho's departure.
Lukaku's one and only start for Manchester United since Solskjaer's appointment came during a FA Cup match against Reading, but the 25-year-old has still scored three goals for the Red Devils during that time.
Although Lukaku is having to bide his time for a place in Solskjaer's starting lineup, Manchester United's head coach insists that the former Chelsea striker is vital for rotation in the north-west.
"He's a big part of the squad, definitely," Solskjaer said, quoted by ESPN. "There's no one scoring as many goals as him in training.
"There are the three who play the most but then you've got Rom, you've got Juan [Mata], you've got Alexis [Sánchez], so I've got a front six I can rotate and Rom is definitely going to be playing games."
Ole definitely prefers Rashford. He's just saying nice things about Lukaku to keep him happy. He'll get his chances no doubt but Rashford is definitely first choice now.
— Shibani (@shibani_mufc) January 19, 2019
Solskjaer, who is Manchester United's record goalscorer as a substitute, added that Lukaku is currently in a similar position to he was during his time at Old Trafford, where he often sat behind Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke and Teddy Sheringham in the pecking order.
"I used to be one of four strikers when we played with two," he added. "Now we have six forwards and we play with three most of the time. We'll be able to rotate and there's enough games and playing time.
"It's about taking the chances when you get them, and to be fair, Rom has scored three already. It's up to the strikers to take them."
Lukaku will hope that his recent goalscoring form off the bench will put him in line to start against Brighton & Hove Albion this weekend, where three points will see United temporarily leapfrog Arsenal ahead of their game against Chelsea.
Source : 90min