Ralf Rangnick will become a consultant at Manchester United after the season. In reality, however, there is hardly any influence for the German. what is his role
Ralf Rangnick’s spell at Manchester United has been quite a long sentence with a pretty big ‘X’ so far. He has won eight of his 16 Premier League games with the English record champions. Makes 50 percent – not a really great rate, on the contrary: statistically, he is one of the worst coaches in the glorious history of the club. That was probably nothing.
When Rangnick succeeded Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in early December 2021, United were seventh, three points adrift of fourth. Today, more than four months later, nothing has changed in terms of placement, but the Champions League is now six points away. Whatever his idea or the idea of the board – if another miracle doesn’t happen, the interim work of the former Bundesliga coach is to be regarded as a failure.
The question remains to what extent a coach in this club can achieve something with this squad, where the gap between aspiration (read: salary) and reality on the pitch is huge. From the summer Erik ten Hag may try, the successful coach of Ajax Amsterdam is about to reach an agreement with the club. Rangnick, on the other hand, should and will take on an advisory position with the Red Devils. This follow-up activity was an important concern for Rangnick.
However, it is questionable to what extent he can influence the important decisions within the club at all. Because it can be heard from the club’s environment that Rangnick doesn’t have much to do with the search for a new coach. According to information from SPOX and GOAL, Rangnick is part of the meetings, which deal with both the new coach and player transfers, but he is not the “dominant voice”.
Ralf Rangnick at Manchester United almost without influence
Instead, responsibility for coaching lies primarily with football director John Murtough, club icon Darren Fletcher, who is employed as technical director (a role Rangnick himself does not know exactly what it means at Man United) and board boss Richard Arnold , who took over from the resigned Ed Woodward at the beginning of February.
That doesn’t mean, however, that Rangnick isn’t trying to help shape the club’s development over the coming years. The 63-year-old presented the board with a four-point plan that should bring Manchester United back to the top.
For example, the club should orientate itself towards Manchester City and Liverpool FC when it comes to player transfers, by signing players who fit a certain style of play. Character and mentality should also match Old Trafford, as should physical strength and aggressiveness. Last but not least, the squad restructuring should take three transfer periods.
Ralf Rangnick: More influence somewhere else?
In reality, however, this is only advice – as a consultant can give it. Rangnick does not have operational decision-making power. And accordingly, the question arises as to whether Rangnick will even fill this role. He should only really work for the club a few days a month from the coming season. So enough time to do something else on the side. Rangnick’s name was recently mentioned when Franco Foda succeeded him as Austrian national coach.
Although the ÖFB denied talks with Rangnick, it cannot be ruled out that Rangnick will go two ways in the future. As early as December, Rangnick was asked whether his advisory role would include the possibility of working elsewhere in an official capacity from the summer.
He said at the time that it was a decision by United’s board of directors. Time will tell if Rangnick’s vision for the club will be implemented and if he still gets a positive place in its history. It probably won’t work out as a coach.
