With uncertainty surrounding the future of several of Manchester United’s first-team players following the arrival of Sir Jim Ratcliffe, a fresh-faced rebuild is on the agenda at Old Trafford, with the recommendations of former interim manager Ralf Rangnick appearing to be a genuine possibility this summer.
Cast your mind back to April 19, 2022, and United supporters around the globe were licking their wounds following a disastrous 4-0 Anfield defeat at the hands of fierce rivals Liverpool. Speaking to the media in the aftermath of this shambolic outing, the then-interim manager, Rangnick, cocked his chest and delivered a scathing assessment of his Manchester United side,
One of the notable segments during his astonishing press conference was the requirement for a football club to identify a style of play and to enhance that by acquiring players that fit a particular system. As we approach a new dawn at the club, Ratcliffe has outlined his desire for any manager to adhere to the United way of thinking, boding an eerily familiar suggestion by the Austrian National manager.
“For me it’s clear there will be 6, 7, 8, maybe 10 new players.”
Ralf Rangnick discusses the rebuild needed at Manchester United. pic.twitter.com/rEdziMSPnp
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) April 20, 2022
“Before you sign those players, you need to be aware how do you want to play,” Rangnick said during his press conference. “If you look at those two clubs, who are currently dominating the Premier League, they did exactly that. They also changed the whole thing with regard to formation – what kind of players do we need, what kind of football do we want to play? The headline of everything was ‘how do we want to play‘.”
Rangnick inevitably left the club less than a week after the arrival of Erik ten Hag, laying the platform for the arrival of six summer signings. The Dutchman would oversee seven arrivals in his second summer window – a record in the post-war pre-season charts. Despite an array of talent arriving in Manchester, many questioned several of these – particularly that of multi-million-pound acquisition Antony.
Fast-forward to the present day and the club are battling against financial fair play – attempting to reconstruct its image. With a desire to return United to the peak of European football, an exodus of players is expected to generate the necessary revenue to support a collective vision.
When assessing the list of arrivals, many have followed a checklist of prior involvement with Ten Hag – either via playing for him, having featured in the Eredivisie or having been scouted. While the success of Lisandro Martínez and Rasmus Højlund has convinced some of the merits of this transfer policy, the underwhelming performances of Sofyan Amrabat and Wout Weghorst, coupled with the injuries to Mason Mount and Tyrell Malacia, have left a sour taste in the mouth of many.
As we approach a new summer transfer window, United may very well be entering a regime that will inevitably buy into the advice of Rangnick. It’s funny that despite the negativity previously hovering over the head of his stint at the club, many now feel that his consultancy role was inevitably cut short, and there is a growing belief in his Manchester ideals.
With the future of the likes of Mason Greenwood today up in the air, tell us – what do you think about the upcoming transfer window and the prospect of endorsing the advice of a man who many felt was swimming in waters deeper than he was capable?
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And, yet again, the finger is pointed at the attitude of the players. Or at least, some of them.
Rangnick was / is highly-respected in football circles, but our players knew he wouldn’t be there long and didn’t buy in to his ideas. But it’s clear he knew the mess the Club was in and gave good advice. Mourinho said getting that rag-tag outfit to 2nd was one of his finest achievements; one can only agree. We read of players turning down the Captaincy, needing time off after playing FULHAM, and can see for ourselves the malaise that sets in during matches.
Not so much Rangnick being out of his depth: we need players willing to be moved out of their comfort zones.
Or moved through the door marked sod off. Sorry: I mean marked exit.