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3 fundamentals Ralf Rangnick must re-instil at Manchester United

Manchester United have hired Ralf Rangnick as the man to replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, at least in the short term.

By LLM Reporters   |  
Paul Pogba Manchester United
Image Credit: vverve/Bigstock.com

With the recent arrival of Ralf Rangnick as interim manager of Manchester United, with a view to taking on a consultancy role from next season, a new chapter is about to begin at Old Trafford. There have been tumultuous times at the club since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013, and the club is yet to win the Premier League since they waved goodbye to the legendary Scot.

Rangnick arrives on a mission to re-build this great club and make them the fearsome prospect they once were for every opposition team that came to Old Trafford. The sad reality is that United were too easy to play against under Ole Gunnar Solskjær. Now is the time to put things right. Here are three key aspects of the club that Rangnick must restore if United are to enjoy success in the coming seasons and rebuild their status as favourites among those who bet on football.

Marcus Rashford Manchester United
Star players like Marcus Rashford have been underperforming all season. Image credit: canno73/Bigstock.com

Standards

You can’t deny that United simply weren’t hitting the required standard of performance with Solskjær at the helm. Time and again this season, the team were getting outplayed in every area of the pitch, with embarrassing defeats against Liverpool, Manchester City and Watford defining a dismal end to the Norwegian’s reign.

The first job on Rangnick’s hands is to reiterate to the players that a certain level is expected of them at such a big club. The German’s reputation as one of the game’s great tacticians should mean he’ll command instant respect from an experienced squad, and as a result we should see an upturn in performance levels as the players implement his ideals.

Pride

Too often in recent times, United’s players have come across dejected, as though they are almost ashamed to be wearing the shirt. Much of this is down to the team’s poor showings this season, with apology videos being uploaded by players to social media with every latest humbling at the hands of a rival.

Rangnick must restore the players’ pride in representing a club as historic as Manchester United. There are not many bigger clubs in world football, so to be playing for one of the giants of the world game should inspire confidence in the players and give them a greater sense of unity with one another. Before long, United could once again be favourites in the free football betting tips.

Old Trafford Manchester United
Manchester United have not won the Premier League title since 2013. Image credit: Songquan Deng/Bigstock.com

Belief

This is perhaps the thing that was lacking most under Solskjær towards the end. United’s players were bereft of belief in themselves, as if there was nothing they could do to turn things around. Rangnick’s methods are infamously demanding, but every player will have a clear purpose and they’ll all be well aware of the role they can play in bringing the club success.

With a clear tactical strategy comes greater belief that United can stand up to the best teams in the Premier League and salvage something from the current season. There may be a few hiccups along the way as Rangnick implements his style and philosophy, but if United’s players buy into his methods, they’ll be in a much better place to avoid the kind of humiliations that have befallen them at times so far this season.