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Few predicted that interim boss Ole Gunnar Solsjkaer would have had this kind of impact at Old Trafford since his appointment at the end of last year. Despite the maiden wins coming against opposition Manchester United were expected to dispatch, a victory and a clean sheet over title-contenders Tottenham is no easy feat.

While the Norwegian may largely have David de Gea and his legs to thank for the three points, the Spurs clash was undoubtedly a game that would have been lost with Jose Mourinho still at the helm. Although the 15 points taken from five games are impressive, Solsjkaer's biggest achievement so far is that he's got the players on his side - something Mourinho failed to do - and that will inevitably lead to improvement.

The way that Paul Pogba has played since Solsjkaer's been in the dugout is quite unbelievable - the Frenchman has chalked up four goals and four assists, almost doubling his tallies under Mourinho - and the difference that a change in management has made to the 25-year-old is remarkable.

Whether that reflects badly on Solsjkaer's predecessor or on Pogba is a matter of opinion, although the latter has gone from warming the bench to running the show in every game he's played.

The pair's turbulent relationship was well reported throughout the season, with the Portuguese naming the former Juve man captain for the opening games of the campaign before things fell apart again - the saga ended with Pogba on the bench for Mourinho's last two games in charge.

Pogba and Mourinho

That drama seems to be a thing of the past and Pogba is back to his sparkling best but, although Solsjkaer's smiley demeanour seems to work for the likes of the aforementioned 64-cap international, Romelu Lukaku is threatening to become the next expensive player to fall out of favour with a United manager.

The former Everton man, signed by Mourinho for £76m in 2017, was pretty much a shoe-in for the 55-year-old but has played just 64 minutes of Premier League football since Solsjkaer's arrival. It would be easy to misconceive that the new boss is going round patting everyone on the back; Lukaku is the prime example of the 45-year-old's refusal to start a player just because they commanded a hefty fee two or three years ago.

This ruthlessness is surely an approach he has borrowed from Sir Alex Ferguson - the former striker won't just play his highest-paid players simply because they earn hundreds-of-thousands, and won't guarantee a spot in the starting XI because that player performed well last time out.

Romelu Lukaku comes on for Martial

While that may make him the complete opposite to Mourinho, Solsjkaer clearly doesn't think Lukaku fits into his team - could this mean we see a similar situation to what we had with Pogba and Mourinho? Possibly.

The 6-foot-3 hitman has made good use of the minutes afforded to him by Solsjkaer, bagging three goals in as many appearances in all competitions, but that has done nothing to persuade the 'Baby-faced Assassin' to give him the nod in the Premier League.

And Solsjkaer could end up missing out on taking the job on a permanent basis if performance standards begin to dip - they inevitably will as this run cannot last forever - and he still refuses to play their best striker.

What do you think, Red Devils fans? Could 'Soljskaer v Lukaku' become the next 'Mourinho v Pogba'? Let us know by voting in the poll below...

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