Ralf Rangnick's reign as Man Utd interim boss questioned by his own ex-assistant

13 September 2023 , 05:30

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Ralf Rangnick's reign as Man Utd interim boss questioned by his own ex-assistant

Ralf Rangnick's reign as Manchester United interim boss was certainly one to forget and Mike Phelan has questioned those running the club for the whole sorry saga.

Phelan spent years sitting alongside Sir Alex Ferguson in the United dug-out and was present on the Red Devils bench for Rangnick's time at the helm. The German was appointed to steer the ship in December of 2021 following Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's sacking a month prior but failed to inspire any significant turnaround in form.

Many felt the decision to hire Rangnick on a temporary basis was indicative of the club's short-term thinking with no real plan to transform the club in the long run. Judging by his recent comments, despite working with the current Austria boss, it would appear Phelan agrees with that school of thought.

"I thought it was difficult," he told Sky Sports. "Not difficult from the point of Ralf being the manager, but the circumstances of him being the manager. It wasn't easy with it because Manchester United - does it need a caretaker manager?

"It needs a proper manager - and I'm not saying Ralf wasn't a proper manager, but he came in under this caretaker role having been one at a smaller club. I always thought it would be difficult for him to establish momentum, to sort out the players in a short space of time."

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A large reason behind Rangnick's appointment was that part of the plan was for him to transition into an upstairs role within the Red Devils hierarchy. That didn't materialise and he left in May of last year, much to the dismay of frustrated fans who questioned why he was brought to the club in the first place.

Phelan went on to discuss how Rangnick was hardly set up for success at United due to the state of the club he was greeted by. "I don't know what conversations he had to get the role but he tried really hard," he added.

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Ralf Rangnick struggled during his time as Man United interim boss (PA)

"It didn't work out in the interest of both parties. He was fantastic as a guy in the environment he was in before becoming manager - he does that director of football role really well, and he was successful at that. Coming in as a manager, he had done that role before, but he was stepping into something turbulent."

Rangnick's record as United boss hardly makes for spectacular reading, as he won just 11 of his 31 games in charge. That underwhelming return saw the Red Devils produce their lowest points tally of the Premier League era.

Josh O'Brien