Fergie has management touch - Solskjaer

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is not surprised in the least by the number of Sir Alex Ferguson's pupils who have entered the management game.

Four of Ferguson's 19 rival Premier League bosses enjoyed the best years of their playing careers at Manchester United, with plenty of others underneath and Solskjaer is the latest to try his luck - as the Red Devils reserve team manager - a role Ferguson personally allocated to the Norwegian.

"I am not surprised at the number of ex-Alex Ferguson players who have gone on to be managers," he said. "Something about the gaffer rubs off on you. He knows his players. He signs players he sees a little bit of himself in. They have the right personality."

He added: "You can't copy anyone, management is not like that.

"But you take little bits. But he has seen and done everything and I have tried to learn from the way he never panics.

"He just takes his time and makes a decision and sticks by it."

Ferguson's philosophy has stood the test of time, although if reports in Spain are to be believed, Cristiano Ronaldo will take it to the limit by informing United of his intention to quit Old Trafford for Real Madrid next week.

It is not a debate Solskjaer is willing to get involved in and neither do United want anything to cloud the Norwegian's testimonial match with Espanyol on Saturday.

The 35-year-old freely admits he could never have imagined to achieve so much when he arrived from Molde in 1996.

Solskjaer's name still reverberates around Old Trafford on matchdays even though it is over a year since he was forced to quit due to a persistent knee injury that first surfaced in 2003.