Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has finally got his dream Man Utd signing at Besiktas and his role in the team is already so important

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has already got one of his dream Manchester United signings at Besiktas after taking over as head coach of the Turkish giants.

The Norwegian took over as Besiktas boss on January 18, signing a one-and-a-half year contract to end a spell of over two years out of football since his United sacking.

His first game in charge was Wednesday's Europa League clash against Athletic Bilbao, which Besiktas won 4-1.

Former Norwich winger Milot Rashica scored either side of half-time after a Unai Gomez equaliser, before goals from Rafa Silva and Joao Mario.

But it was another Besiktas star who put in a star performance that Solskjaer will perhaps have enjoyed just as much as the goals.

Former Tottenham loanee midfielder Gedson Fernandes played the full 90 minutes as part of a two-man defensive midfield and impressed onlookers.

The Portugal international signed permanently for Besiktas in 2022 following loan spells at Tottenham and Galatasaray.

He broke into the senior Benfica squad at the age of 19 but was allowed to leave the club, and has shown what he is capable of at both ends of the pitch with 14 goals in 110 appearances for Besiktas.

Back in January 2020, Fernandes was linked with a move to United when Solskjaer was in charge.

Sky Sports reported that United were interested in signing the Portugal midfielder and that the player's representatives had been in the UK to speak to four unnamed Premier League clubs.

Gedson Fernandes battles for the ball during Besiktas' 4-1 win over Athletic Bilbao (Image: Getty)

One of those Premier League clubs were Tottenham, who promptly sealed an 18-month loan deal with an option to buy.

However, he made just seven league appearances until the end of the 2019/20 season under Jose Mourinho, and didn't play a single game in 2020/21 before being recalled early by Benfica.

United would ultimately go on to sign Bruno Fernandes from Sporting Lisbon in January, before acquiring Donny van de Beek from Ajax - but it can be argued that, even today, the club still haven't solved their issues in defensive midfield that a player like Gedson Fernandes could be able to address.