Aston Villa had Axel Tuanzebe on loan last summer, but gave up on a deal to bring him back from Manchester United.
Villa were very keen on Tuanzebe this summer, after he had a successful loan spell at Villa Park last term.
However, Solskjaer was unwilling to sanction a deal, as he wanted to take a closer look at Tuanzebe before allowing him to leave Old Trafford again.
It left Villa in a position where they would have had to remain patient to have a chance of getting hold of Tuanzebe, with no guarantees that a transfer was even possible.
Dean Smith ultimately decided that going for Tuanzebe was too risky, with Villa looking at other targets instead.
That move could have made Villa frustrated, if United had allowed Tuanzebe to leave at a later stage of the window.
But Smith looks to have made the right decision now, as the nosies coming out of United suggest that Tuanzebe will be sticking around.
“Axel has got a great chance of staying here and playing,” Solskjaer said.
“He got promoted with Aston Villa and he’s come back very strong and focused. He did well in the first game here in Perth, so he’s one of the young exciting players I can’t wait to see more of.”
If Villa had waiting for Tuanzebe, they may well have been left scrambling around for targets in the latter stages of the window.
But by giving up on him, Smith has allowed Villa to get their new look defence in place very early, and it looks to have been the correct call.
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