Ole Gunnar Solskjaer concedes he wishes he could replay the Champions League semi-final of 2002 so that he could score a chance Roy Keane still holds against him
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admits he wished he could go back to the Champions League semi-final in 2002 to score a goal so that he could “shut up Roy Keane” – who still gives him grief for his miss.
For all Manchester United‘s dominance of the Premier League, players speak of several missed opportunities on the European stage with Sir Alex Ferguson claiming victory just twice across a period of success that spanned 30 years.
One of the teams to oust them in the Champions League was Bayer Leverkusen, who made it all the way to the final that year. They downed United by virtue of away goals before losing to Real Madrid.
They had drawn the first leg at Old Trafford 2-2 with Oliver Neuville scoring a late equaliser for the Germans, so United knew they were at an immediate disadvantage as they headed for the away leg. In Leverkusen they could only draw 1-1, Keane scoring for the Red Devils, but it wasn’t enough.
Diego Forlan saw an effort cleared off the line and shortly after Solskjaer was found in the box by Ryan Giggs, but the Norwegian rushed his chance and fired the bouncing ball over the crossbar from close range – something Keane still gives him grief for.
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Solskjaer told the BBC: “There’s one game I would love to play again and score a goal and shut Roy Keane up. So Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League semi-final. Every time I meet Roy, he mentions this chance that I missed. The ball is just behind me, its a half-volley, I hit it just over the bar and we lose on away goals. So every time I see Roy he mentions that one. So that’s the one to change the history.”
United would finish that season trophyless as they were left to bemoan another Champions League chance that has passed them by. Even recently Keane was still referencing Solskjaer’s miss.
Speaking on Stick to Football the Irishman admits the miss still plagues his memories. He said: “I know you have to move on, but Bayer Leverkusen – I can still see Ole’s chance in that game. I bring it up when I see him now, I still mention the chance he missed! Forget how brilliant he was – I went, ‘f***ing hit the target!’”
Solskjaer does have his name etched into United history books having scored the goal which won the Champions League in 1999. He appeared off the bench as United scored twice in the last two minutes to stun Bayern Munich in the Nou Camp.
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