Molde Insist Ole Gunnar Solskjaer Has No Agreement to Stay at Manchester United

Molde managing director Oystein Neerland has said there is no agreement between them and Manchester United for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to remain at Old Trafford beyond this season, regardless of his success at the club.

The United icon returned to his old stomping ground as interim manager before Christmas and has won his first five matches in charge, but Neerland said the terms of their agreement are until May, per the Daily Mail's Adam Crafton.

The Molde chief said: "The deal is until May 12. That is our Plan A and our Plan B. We have no Plan C. We have only spoken with United about this period, January to May. Nothing else. I'm staying with this plan." 

Molde allowed their manager to leave for England, with the understanding he would return to their helm in May. They're allowing the tactician to miss the first few months of the Norwegian league campaign, which kicks off in March.

Neerland was pressed on whether he thought the Norwegian would return when his tenure at United is over and smiled as he said: "I think Ole will be back in May. I think."

There is an air of doubt over that fate, though, following the 45-year-old's fast start at the club with which he holds a close bond. Solskjaer himself has been tight-lipped on his chances of penning permanent terms, via Goal:

Despite his early success in the United hot seat, the former Cardiff City manager lacks the elite credentials certain members of the United board will seek in a manager and would need to pull off something of a miracle to land the job permanently.

That being said, there's no arguing against the immediate turnaround in results since he replaced sacked Jose Mourinho, with the club scoring 16 goals in his first five matches.

Above all else, Solskjaer has brought a sense of club identity back to the squad, but he remains a humble steward as he goes about his business in impressive fashion:

The Red Devils are still sixth in the Premier League and are in need of considerable improvement. Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino remains the favourite to be named the next permanent United chief, per BBC Sport's Simon Stone.

Even Manchester City counterpart Pep Guardiola has been impressed with Solskjaer's fine work thus far for his rivals:

It's unlikely Molde would be able to withstand United's financial muscle if the Premier League giants decided they wanted to pay to get Solskjaer out of his contract and the desire to reunite permanently was mutual.

That being said, Molde are at least clear in acknowledging there's no existing agreement for the manager to extend his stay.