Michael Carrick believes Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo will press more under Ralf Rangnick
Many have had concerns about Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and his lack of pressing and whether he would press more under Ralf Rangnick and Michael Carrick chipped in those discussions with his insight. The concerns are valid as the superstar is not known for his efforts in defending from the front, whereas Rangnick is infamous for preferring gegenpressing.
Speaking in the pre-match press conference (h/t ESPN), Carrick has expressed that Ronaldo could adapt to the pressing style used by the German and has labelled the concerns to be a “myth”. He was speaking ahead of the match against Arsenal in the Premier League.
The Portuguese international got dropped to the bench against Chelsea, which raised eyebrows around the world. Some fans concluded that it was due to the new interim manager’s arrival which prompted the decision. And you cannot blame them for it as it was a high profile match.
“Maybe it is a myth. Maybe that is how it is. He’s played in enough teams over the years being successful to play in a variety of ways and kept scoring goals for every team. I’m sure he will continue to score goals, there is no doubt about that.”
Is it the truth?
The Englishman is wrong in his claim about the pressing concerns being a myth as stats prove otherwise. According to FBREF, the 36-year-old has completed just 14 successful pressures from 77 attempts while having the third-worst completion rate with just 18.2 per cent.
The star man only betters David De Gea and Diogo Dalot, which is not a good look in terms of his defensive actions. He is known for his incredible physique and work ethic in terms of maintaining his fitness, but one would wonder why does it not transfer to the effort he puts into defending.
However, the former midfielder should not be criticised for it as he was defending one of his players. While his claims were false, it is understandable why he conveyed that as his insight. It was notable when he used the goal output to justify his thoughts.
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There is no doubt that CR7 will deliver in front of the goal, and it would be stupid to think otherwise. But this issue is whether he would change his game to help the team collectively. Pressing is a crucial facet in the modern game which, is proven right as heavyweights like Manchester City, Liverpool, and Chelsea have used it to dominate other clubs.
We hope that the forward will do whatever is necessary to help the club collectively under our new boss.
