But Manchester United’s latest permanent manager insisted that if he has one hope for his legacy it is that he walks out of the door on his final day at the Threatre of Dreams with a smile on his face.
No one who has witnessed the effect he has already had on this club would bet against that happening.
Because from the moment he walked into Old Trafford for a second time, a week before Christmas, after stints as player and reserve team manager, grabbing the reins from Jose Mourinho, he has not stopped.
That relentless positivity has rubbed off on everyone around him – just three defeats in 19 games evidence he has barely put a foot wrong, from the appointments he has made around him to the right arms around the right shoulders of players.
His assured movements have in effect presented executive vice chairman Ed Woodward with the easiest decision he will ever have to make.
“What we’ve done, it’s been about putting a smile on people’s faces,” said Solskjaer.
“Whether by winning games or just speaking to them. It’s been about creating an environment everyone wants to be part of, feeling they can be their best self.
“The players and staff have been great and the supporters have made these three months for me unbelievable but now we have to keep moving forward and keep making progress.
“There’s still room for improvement though because we’re too far behind.”
United are not as far behind as they were when he took over with the turnaround from 11 points adrift of the top four to two points. They have 32 from a possible 39 since he took over and despite losing to Arsenal in their last Premier League game, they are showing little signs of stopping.
Yet it is as much the style of play which has got fans on side from the moment they scored five goals away from home in his first match in charge to their smash-and-grab last-minute win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
His enthusiasm to push young talent from Marcus Rashford to including several youth team players in his trip to Paris for Mission Impossible – while dictated to by injury and suspension – played well with supporters and the club hierarchy.
Solskjaer is also understood to have impressed the hierarchy by insisting on greater discipline from the players which had slipped in the final months under Mourinho. The new boss had demanded players were also wearing suits with the top button fastened up and ties on.
He also asked them to always sign fans’ programmes when asked – a return to what United stood for. If luck has played a part, the suspicion is the decision to appoint Solskjaer full time was made after that PSG win.
After three questionable decisions trying to replace Sir Alex Ferguson in David Moyes, Louis van Gaal and Mourinho – three managers who necessarily tried to put distance between themselves and the Scot – United have finally established enough space to reconnect.
From the appointment of Ferguson’s former assistant Mike Phelan as his right-hand man, Solskjaer’s unashamed admiration of a man he still calls ‘the boss’ has seemed finally right.
Solskjaer admitted he had picked up the phone to Sir Alex after he was confirmed in the full-time role.
“It is just one of the first phone calls you make, isn’t it?” he said. Having first joined United as a player in 1996, helping them to their finest season with the last kick of the treble-winning season in 1999 then acting as strikers’ coach, and reserve team manager, there are few parts of the club not in his blood.
Indeed, nothing about his record at Old Trafford is anything but positive. If there are any doubts about his quality as a manager they come from a short spell as Cardiff boss in 2014 which saw them relegated and start the next Championship season poorly.
Solskjaer insists much has changed since. His return to Molde where he won two Norwegian titles, the club landing £500,000 in compensation for the loss of his services this week which United insist was a goodwill gesture, helped him reset.
Woodward is a sharp operator who knows the appointment of Solskjaer was a no-brainer.
Had he appointed Mauricio Pochettino and the Argentine struggled to impose a new structure the mistake would be traced back to his door.
Solskjaer talked of how he wants to bring back trophies. He smiled when asked whether he meant this season as the Champions League is their one remaining hope.
“As a striker I was always an optimist,” he said. “You look back in your own memory bank how it feels to be a winner and champ. I can’t wait to see these players getting that feeling.”
United have just bought into it again.