Krishnan Sreekumar
Ralf Rangnick believes that the Manchester United squad lacks mental strength
According to ESPN, Manchester United interim boss Ralf Rangnick believes that the current squad does not have the mental strength to overcome obstacles, with only Luke Shaw and Scott McTominay in the first team identified to have this necessary quality to succeed.
Rangnick only took over at the club in December last year, replacing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as interim manager of the side until the end of the season. The German was previously a technical director at Lokomotiv Moscow before the Red Devils came calling.
Now, it is said that the German is of the opinion that the squad he inherited from Solskjaer lacks the ability to overcome adversity in games. This seems to be a constant narrative in matches this term as we have been unable to dominate on the pitch even after going behind.
It was most recently seen last Sunday against Manchester City in the derby at the Etihad Stadium amidst a 4-1 loss. Although Jadon Sancho pulled a goal back in the first half to briefly equalise against the Cityzens, the Red Devils were outplayed in a second-half where they conceded two more goals without getting a single shot on target.
Leadership missing
On his arrival in Manchester late last year, Rangnick appointed sports psychologist Sascha Lense to improve the mindset of the squad after the side went on a poor string of results earlier in the season under the German’s predecessor. The interim boss, however, has been impressed by the character and leadership displayed by McTominay and Shaw on the pitch when the team have gone behind in games.
The pair seem to be natural leaders on the pitch and show tenacity, while other players become distracted by mistakes or allow their frustrations with teammates and Rangnick’s tactics to impact their focus and contribution.
Quite often this season, we have seen United struggle to take the lead due to their troubles in front of goal – the 0-0 draw against Watford last week comes to mind. At other times, we have witnessed the team fail to hold on to a slender lead after going in front, unable to close out games effectively.
The numbers don’t lie, and it is said that on five occasions this term, the Old Trafford side have gone on to draw games because they couldn’t hold on to leads. Further, only on only two occasions, have Rangnick’s men been able to turn things around and secure a positive result after going behind in the game.
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One of the two exceptions where we managed to salvage points was against Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Round of 16 of the Champions League, when we played out a 1-1 away draw. With the second leg of the fixture looming next week, Rangnick will need to dig deep and grind out a positive result to progress further in the competition.
The German was tasked with helping the side finish in the top four spots of the league table, and they are currently in danger of missing out on the same. Although in fifth place, they are only one point behind Arsenal despite playing three more Premier League games than the Gunners.
