tribute to ole #20

Updated: "Footballing world has just lost another talent. Sevilla's Spanish international midfielder Antonio Puerta died three days after collapsing in a La Liga match against Getafe. It was believed heart attack was the course of death. My condolence to the player's family and friends, and the fans. R.I.P. "



I just got this news from ESPN Sportscenter on TV just now. One of Manchester United's all-time fans' favorites has retired from football, after failing to recover from serious knee injury, of which has plagued most of his career in the latter stage.



Apparently, Solskjaer has failed to recovered from his long-term injury. He has had no choice but to retire this season, at the age of 34. With that, I believe, it would be a hit to Sir Alex as he is running short of options at the attacking front-line. With Wayne Rooney out injured, and suspension to Portuguese sensation Cristiano Ronaldo, Fergie has only got Argentine Carlos Tevez, being backed up by fitness-lacking Louis Saha, and unproven Chinese youngster Dong FangZhuo.

Back to Ole, he was also dubbed as baby-faced assassin by the media, much thanks to his evergreen appearance and his killer-instinct in front of goalmouth. He is mostly used off the bench by the manager, and with that he earned his reputation as the super super-sub for Manchester United. One of the best moments in his career with the England side, he scored the dramatic injury time-winner for Manchester United in Champions League Final-clash with Bayern Munich in 1999. That season, Manchester United went on to win a treble -- Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League.



As a Manchester United fan, I felt that I must do this post to pay a tribute to a player who had served the Red Devils well. Thank you Ole.



Read about Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in Wikipedia.

Photos courtesy of ABC online, BBC and SoccerBid.