The Ralf Rangnick era begins on a high at Manchester United after a deserved win against a determined Crystal Palace, with the experienced German coach now to see all on-field operations until the end of the season, optimism has slowly started to creep in surrounding just what could be achieved by the Reds with the 63-year-old now at the wheel.
ATTACKING FOOTBALL SYNONYMOUS WITH UNITED
A master of pressing football, Rangnick has paved the way for Jurgen Klopp, Thomas Tuchel, and Ralph Hasenhuttl within the modern game, and now managing for the first time in England, will for sure face some tricky tests both domestically and on the European stage.
Ralf Rangnick spoke to the press on Tuesday afternoon as he looked ahead to Manchester United’s upcoming Champions League match against BSC Young Boys.
United have already secured qualification from Group F heading into the match and are assured of top spot regardless of the result they achieve against the Swiss side at Old Trafford.
NEMANJA MATIC TO CAPTAIN SIDE
The German tactician is expected to make plenty of changes for the match with youngsters such as Anthony Elanga and Teden Mengi set for match-day involvement while Donny van de Beek and Dean Henderson will both start. Captain Maguire and first-choice keeper, De Gea will not feature hence the captaincy will be handed over to an elated Matic who has said it is a big honor for him to captain the team.
Dean Henderson will start between the posts. Raphael Varane and Edinson Cavani have returned to training with Manchester United but won’t be available for selection against Young Boys on Wednesday.
Interim manager Ralf Rangnick is hopeful both will be available for selection soon but they won’t feature in the final Champions League group game at Old Trafford, with United already guaranteed top spot.
Raphael Varane has been out since suffering a hamstring injury in the draw with Atalanta five weeks ago but returned to training on the grass at Carrington for the first time on Tuesday.
TOP FOUR PREMIER LEAGUE POSITION ACCEPTABLE FOR RANGNICK
Cavani’s last appearance was in the same game and he has been suffering from discomfort in his tendon, but he trained for the first time on Monday. Book Makers have stated that the German tactician will maintain a first 11 for premier league matches, something that Ole Gunner failed to do, much to the annoyance of United die-hards.
As the Premier League title seems elusive for Rangnick, a top-four spot will be deemed as a success. United kick-started the season on a high and at some point were at the top of the table but that soon followed with some unacceptable inconsistencies that eventually cost Ole Gunner his job.
It would be interesting to see who the German tactician will keep or release during the January transfer window, with Pogba and Jesse Lingard cases still unresolved and an interesting rumour indicating Chelsea’s Timo Werner as a target for Ralf Rangnick. Rangnick will be given a substantial amount of cash to boost his squad.
