Krishnan Sreekumar
Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick takes the blame for the team’s poor end to the 2021/22 campaign
As quoted by the Daily Mail, Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick took the blame upon himself for failing to inspire the team to achieve their objectives for the 2021/22 season and implement his aggressive style of football, while also taking a swipe at Cristiano Ronaldo for his lack of pressing.
Rangnick was brought in late last year to guide the side to a top-four finish by the end of the campaign, but he has only managed to finish the season in sixth place in the Premier League table. This sees the Red Devils secure a UEFA Europa League spot for next term, alongside Arsenal, who ended in fifth position.
The interim boss admitted that the squad never came near to playing the aggressive and proactive style of football he would normally prefer. The German said that he should have done better and developed the team in a more sustainable way in order to gain better results.
“We never came near to that aggressive, pro-active football I’d normally want to do. It has to do with physicality if you want to play like that. I should have done better and developed this team in a more sustainable way.”
Last night, the game against Crystal Palace was also Rangnick’s last match in charge of the club as the interim manager. The 63-year-old will still be associated with the Old Trafford outfit by acting in a consultancy role, offering advice to the club hierarchy when and as needed.
“I am not blaming Cristiano at all”
His last game as head coach saw United fail to get going from the get-go, looking lethargic and short of creativity on the pitch. It did not help that his main striker Cristiano Ronaldo was missing from the squad, having missed the final away trip of the season due to injury.
Rangnick used Ronaldo as an example of why he was not able to play his preferred style of football, saying that the Portugal captain was not a pressing monster. However, he insisted that he is not blaming the 37-year-old, as the star was never used to that kind of football even when he was young.
“I am not blaming Cristiano at all, he did great in games, but he is not a pressing monster. Even when he was young, he wasn’t shouting, ‘The other team has the ball, where can we win balls?'”
Having ended his tenure as interim manager of the club with a disappointing 1-0 loss to Crystal Palace, Rangnick will wonder where it has gone all wrong for him and the team. At one point, the Red Devils were sitting in fourth place ahead of competitors Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, and West Ham United.
In the end, the ex-RB Leipzig boss managed to finish only above West Ham, but that is largely due to the Hammers failing to win their final game of the season against Brighton last night. A win for the London side would have seen United play in the UEFA Europa Conference League next season instead.
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Rangnick inherited a squad that finished second in the Premier League last term, but has since failed to hit those same heights. The German tried to impose his ideas on the squad, but in the end, it looks as though he did not have the right personnel to find success in Manchester.
He will now hand over the reins to Erik ten Hag, who will be taking over the club from the summer. Hopefully, the incoming new manager can learn from Rangnick’s mistakes, and look to avoid them in order to kick start a new era at Old Trafford.
