Ole admits Man Utd are level below Barcelona

Matt Stead

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has conceded that Barcelona were a level above his team after Barcelona knocked Manchester United out of the Champions League.

Lionel Messi produced a brilliant performance at the Camp Nou as Barcelona beat the visitors 3-0 on the night, making it a comfortable 4-0 victory over the two legs.

There had been plenty of talk about Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s famous treble-winning goal at the Camp Nou in 1999, but there were to be no such heroics from United 20 years on.

Two goals from the Argentinian, the second of which down to a blunder from David de Gea, killed the tie after 20 minutes after an open start with chances at both ends.

“I have to say Lionel Messi is top quality and he was the difference of course. At 2-0 straight after it was game over,” said Solskjaer, speaking to BT Sport after the match.

“He’s different class, he and Cristiano Ronaldo are the best players of the last decade, everyone agrees on that one. Messi showed his quality.

“We have to aspire to get to that level of Barcelona, we can get there but we have loads of work to do. If we want to get back to Man Utd’s true level, true traditions, we have to challenge Barcelona.

“They were a couple of levels above over the two games. We want to play these games again next year so we have a massive week coming up. There is no point dwelling on what could have been, we have to focus on that week.”

After coming from behind in Paris, there was no such fightback in Barcelona as the hosts took complete control. It’s set to be another trophyless season for United, who now have to focus on getting into the top four in their final five Premier League games.

But their current form suggests it will be a struggle. After setting an all-time record by winning his first nine away games in charge, United have since lost their last four on the road under Solskjaer – their worst run away since October 1999, when the Norwegian featured prominently as a player.