Newcastle hero Alan Shearer believes the Red Devils still have a lot to prove and that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is ‘no miracle worker’.
The Norwegian for his reign off to an emphatic start with goals from Marcus Rashford, Ander Herrera, Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard securing all three points.
United are still eight points off a top four place but Shearer did admit he was impressed with the style the team played with.
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He told The Sun: “The team were far more positive than they had been, playing with a freedom not seen for a long time.
“Instead of the first thought being to pass to left, right or back towards their own goal, everyone instead was looking forward for their first option.
“So while nobody should get carried away, it was a much better performance compared to what we had been watching under Mourinho.
“You see better people and better footballers when they have a smile on their face, and we saw signs already that the Manchester United players were enjoying their football again.
“Solskjaer is no miracle worker and can’t have gone into the dressing room and changed much in two days.
“All he could do was to give everyone a pat on the back and get them smiling, remind them how good they are and who they are playing for.
“And then they got an early goal and suddenly everything was much rosier in the garden. It’s an unbelievable opportunity for him now and he has nothing to lose.
“But you can’t comment on Solskjaer’s effect yet — if they are still playing like they did on Saturday in two months’ time then, yes, you can say he has had a real impact.
“If things go well until the end of the season and he can even win a trophy like the FA Cup, then he is absolutely in the frame to be considered for the job full-time.”
United will look to put a string of wins together with Huddersfield up next in the Premier League on Boxing Day.
Shearer thinks the Red Devils will have to sign players in January though if they want to finish in the top four.
He added: “I don’t think they will get into the top four, especially if they don’t make a couple of decent signings in January.
“They still have issues in terms of creativity in midfield and they look miles away when I look at the defence.
“They still have one of the best keepers in the world, but defensively they are all over the place.”