‘Stunned’ Rangnick troubled by two huge Man Utd issues

Joe Williams
Man Utd boss Ralf Rangnick looks frustrated

Ralf Rangnick is struggling to believe the current state of Man Utd following his appointment at the end of last year, according to reports.

The German was handed the role as interim boss until the end of the season at Old Trafford in November after the Red Devils chose to sack Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Rangnick has three wins, a draw and a loss from his first five matches in charge but his side’s poor and unimaginative performances haven’t gone down well.


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Many fans, pundits and former players have criticised his tactics with Man Utd struggling to create chances, while former defender Gary Neville has been annoyed at the body language of the players.

And the Daily Mail now claims that a ‘stunned’ Rangnick ‘has been shocked at quite how far United have fallen and how badly the club is misfiring’.

The Man Utd boss knows it will take ‘a huge improvement in recent performances to prevent the atmosphere turning toxic’ and has conceded that a top-four finish in the Premier League will ‘be hard to achieve’ this season.

Rangnick is currently most concerned about two immediate issues at Man Utd. Firstly, the former RB Leipzig head coach ‘feels that style isn’t suited to his defenders’ and could have to ‘compromise his system to steer them back on track’.

And secondly, ‘it is also understood that Rangnick’s coaching team think the physical conditioning of the team is below what they had expected’.

Meanwhile, Man Utd captain Harry Maguire says he wants to “repeat” what “the likes of Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic” achieved at Old Trafford.

Maguire said: “I came here to win titles. I could have signed elsewhere, but I wanted to be at United and help get them back to the winning ways that the club had in the Sir Alex (Ferguson) era.

“It will come if we all stay together. I grew up idolising the likes of Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic – and I want to repeat what they achieved.

“I am privileged to be captain and I’ve got a responsibility to lead the players and turn things round.”