“No surprise” – Rangnick on Manchester United resurgence, ‘many things’ he wanted ‘have been implemented’

Former Manchester United manager Ralf Rangnick has insisted that many of the recommendations he made to those above him at the club have now been implemented by Erik ten Hag.

The Austria boss has been speaking to Sport 1 about his former club after his spell as interim manager last year.

He arrived at Old Trafford as a temporary replacement for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in December 2021 after Manchester United decided to part ways with their former manager.

It had initially been believed that Rangnick would take charge of the team until the summer before stepping into a director of football role at the end of the season ahead of a rebuild under a new manager.

That did not prove to be the case, though, as Rangnick’s time in the dugout proved to be something of a damp squib and the club elected to go in a different direction.

They’ve since found themselves back on the upward trend under new manager Erik ten Hag, who arrived from Ajax in the summer and has set about reshaping both the squad and the operations at the club.

That has result in tangible changes throughout and a growing belief that Manchester United will be back competing for titles again sooner rather than later.

That’s something which did not appear would be the case if Rangnick had stayed, although he insists many of his ideas have since been implemented at the club.

“Of course, it wasn’t an easy time. The time to get there back then, there could have been cheaper ones” he said.

“Obviously, the club has recognized the signs of the times. Many of the things that we discussed internally back then have now been implemented.

“They brought in a lot of new players. Other players who, for various reasons, were not able to perform at their best back then are now in top form again when they are fit.

“I think of Marcus Rashford. Luke Shaw is fit again at the moment and doesn’t have any major injury problems anymore. They are now a team again, so of course there were certain problems for certain reasons.

“You now have the opportunity to develop as a team again. They have a really good coach in Erik ten Hag, so it’s no surprise that they end up in the top four this year. I think you can say that now.

“And now in the FA Cup final against City they even have a chance to win a second title.”