Watford boss Claudio Ranieri says taking the job at Vicarage Road is like a "sky diving" jump.

Ahead of facing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Manchester United, Ranieri has sympathised with the United manager as he faces calls to quits after being parachuted into Old Trafford three years ago.

Ranieri laughed: “I remember when I was back in Italy many years ago, a coach said to us the manager is like a parachuter.

“You don't know if the parachute is open or closed, and sometimes in my career people didn't give me a parachute!

“Solskjaer is doing very well. Manchester United want to win every time and get back to that Alex Ferguson era. That is normal.

“The pressure is a positive one for him and everybody who works in Manchester. This will be a very good match against two teams who want to win.

“I don't know if it is a good time to play them but this is our time to play and we have a lot of respect for one of the biggest teams in England and Europe.

“We want to play our match in front of our fans and I am very positive. I think we can do something good."