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Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer praises ‘happy, confident’ Odion Ighalo after FA Cup brace at Derby

United face Norwich in quarter-finals after 3-0 victory at Pride Park

Alex Pattle
Thursday 05 March 2020 23:30 GMT
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Ighalo's double put the result beyond doubt
Ighalo's double put the result beyond doubt

Manchester United coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has praised his ‘happy and confident’ striker Odion Ighalo after the new signing netted twice in a 3-0 FA Cup win at Derby.

United left-back Luke Shaw opened the scoring with a volley that scraped Jesse Lingard’s back as it bounced over the Derby defence and into the far corner, before Ighalo’s brace sealed a quarter-final spot for Solskjaer’s side.​

Ighalo’s first goal saw the striker hammer a rebound into the roof of the net, before he capitalised on a loose ball in the box for his second.

“When you get strikers in you want them to be happy and confident,” Solskjaer told the BBC after the game. “He has come in here and of course we still have a few injuries and it is great for us to have Odion to call upon.

“He is a different striker for us and scores some good goals, there is not many who could dig that one out for his first.”

Solskjaer also praised United’s record goalscorer Wayne Rooney, who lined up for Derby on Thursday evening.

“Everyone loves Wayne, all the supporters at Manchester United appreciate what he did,” Solskjaer said.

“He played well. He shows class and sometimes he has too much time on the ball for my liking.”

United’s FA Cup quarter-final sees them travel to Norwich.

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