Tuchel: Confident United will be a tough challenge

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's appointment has seen a turnaround in Manchester United's fortunes ahead of its clash with Paris Saint-Germain.

Published : Feb 12, 2019 17:14 IST

Paris Saint-Germain boss Thomas Tuchel.
Paris Saint-Germain boss Thomas Tuchel.
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Paris Saint-Germain boss Thomas Tuchel.

Thomas Tuchel knows Paris Saint-Germain will face a Manchester United side revitalised under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the last 16 of the Champions League.

After qualifying top of a group that also included Liverpool and Napoli, the Ligue 1 champion was dealt a tough hand in the first knockout stage when drawn against United.

Much has changed since the teams were paired together at the end of last year. Jose Mourinho was in charge of the Red Devils at that time, but the Portuguese was sacked soon after and replaced by Solskjaer on an interim basis.

READ | Solskjaer has resurgent Man Utd ready for PSG test

The change in management has led to a stunning turnaround in the team's fortunes - United has triumphed in 10 of its 11 games under the Norwegian, with Burnley the only side to stop it winning in his reign so far.  In contrast, PSG will be without the injured Neymar for both legs of the tie, while Edinson Cavani is set to miss Tuesday's game at Old Trafford after picking up a hip problem at the weekend.

"Manchester United play with a lot of confidence, score a lot of goals, get a lot of early leads. It's an impressive run," Tuchel told the media.

"To play at Old Trafford against this Manchester United is like the group stage again. It's one of the toughest challenges. We were in extremely good shape at the end of the group stage. Since the draw, things have changed completely. I always said to talk about it in February.

"They are full of energy and full of confidence and it will be a tough challenge."

Tuchel refused to be drawn on what Solskjaer had done to achieve such impressive results but does expect United to be bold in its approach - just like its caretaker manager was during his playing days at the club.

RELATED | Solskjaer sidesteps future questions ahead of blockbuster United games

"I'd love to have a good answer but I'm not sure it's on me to talk about the situation. Obviously, there is an effect," the former Borussia Dortmund boss said.  "We have a word in Germany: if you go to the doctor and he heals you, he's right - it doesn't matter how!

"He [Solskjaer] was a super dangerous player, any time he came on he was there to win games and he does the same as a manager here. It's a big challenge to play against him."

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