Rangnick ‘suffers first blow’ as Man Utd boss ‘evaluates players’
Ralf Rangnick has apparently ‘suffered his first blow’ as Manchester United boss, while ‘evaluating his players’ from afar.
Rangnick was announced as United’s new manager on Monday, but will not take charge of the clash with Arsenal on Thursday as he still awaits his work visa.
How Ralf Rangnick fared against Klopp, Tuchel and Rodgers
The German has left his role with Locomotiv Moscow to take the reins at Old Trafford, stepping in for Michael Carrick, who’s taken charge of United’s last two games following the dismissal of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
And the Mirror claim Rangnick’s ‘suffered his first blow’ having been told he will not be able to appint his former right-hand man, Lars Kornetka, as his assistant.
Kornetka worked under Rangnick in Moscow, but will be unable to join him in the Premier League, as he has replaced the 63-year-old as Head of Sports and Development at the Russian club.
The pair worked together at Hoffenheim, Schalke and RB Leipzig, but Rangnick will now have to find an alternative assistant to aid him at Old Trafford.
The Mirror also claim this news is happening while Rangnick ‘evaluates the players’ at United, which is a tad misleading.
Presumably he is looking at video and stats on his new players, but he is yet to see them in action on the training pitch.
Meanwhile, Micah Richards believes there has been a “massive overreaction” to Rangnick’s arrival at United.
He said: “You know why I’m groaning? I’ll tell you why I’m groaning!.
“Everyone’s making out like Rangnick is some sort of messiah like he’s come to this country and he’s got five league titles and a Champions League!
“It’s a massive, massive overreaction.”
When asked whether he’s among those doubting Rangnick due to his lack of Premier League experience, Richards added:
“No, no, no! I’m definitely not that. You’ve always got to give someone a chance and time.
“I’m just talking about everyone jumping on the bandwagon like he’s the messiah.”
Richards also raised doubts regarding United’s plan for Rangnick:
“Who is going to be the manager? We’re talking about Rangnick because he’s got the consultancy after the six months.
“I get him coming to Manchester United and I actually think it’s really good for United to have a clear plan as to what they want to do, the style of play, the players that they’ll want to attract if that’s what he wants to do. So I get that part.
“But I don’t get the part that he’s coming in there for six months then someone is coming in as he takes a step back. I don’t get that.
“Who is he going to get in there?”