With Manchester United’s last two games being postponed due to covid we have a rare opportunity to take a break from the relentless fixture schedule and reflect. Here I am going to take a look at what we have seen so far from Rangnick and what we might expect to see in the future.
Pressing
Since Ralf Rangnick was announced to take over as United manager we all knew that pressing and counter-pressing where going to be phrases that we heard a lot about. How that was to translate on the pitch was yet to be seen. However, now after a few games with Ralf in charge we have slightly more information on how that might look.
In Rangnick’s first game in charge against Crystal Palace we saw a glimpse of what looked like a plan. We saw maybe thirty or forty minutes of high-pressing football. United looked to control that game in the midfield areas and hit quickly on the break. But then in the midweek Champions League game we saw a heavily rotated side and not too many conclusions could have been drawn from that performance.
But then in our last match against Norwich the whole team looked pretty poor. Especially when you consider most of the squad had the week off in the build up to that game. In all honesty I’m not too sure why that match went down that way. Why did the whole team look so lacklustre?
Either way, that is clearly not how Rangnick wants us to be playing football. I think given more time to work in training, Rangnick can get this team playing the kind of football he wants to see. The kind of football that sees us control games from the off. The kind of football where we create strong chances and look sharp in attacks. Both of those things we haven’t seen from a United side in a long time. All of which will help us to turn this season around and hopefully then continue that into the future.
What is success for Rangnick?
Obviously, at Manchester United we want to be winning the highest honours. We want to be winning league titles, Champions Leagues, FA Cups. But the start of this season would suggest that we are nowhere near those kinds of levels. However, in theory I think we have a squad that is capable of at least challenging in the cup competitions.
If we want to be serious about ever challenging for the league, we need work. A few signings and a total shift in the atmosphere around the club. Now, hopefully these are both things that Rangnick can bring in the future. But what about this season? What can we realistically hope to get from this season?
I think the best we can hope for in the league is 4th. Obviously, those are not the standards that we as United fans should hold. But that is the situation that we find ourselves in. Those top three teams in Man City, Liverpool and Chelsea just seem relentless. Even the fight for 4th will be close. I’d say there are three or four teams who could genuinely have an equal, if not better, chance for that place. You’d have to say West Ham, Arsenal and Spurs could be in with a shout, given the current league table.
In terms of the cups, I think we could have a decent run in the Champions League or the FA Cup. Obviously, we haven’t exactly been helped by the draws of either competitions. Aston Villa in the FA Cup and Atletico Madrid in the Champions League are hardly favourable draws. Especially when you consider who our rivals are getting in these same rounds.
Overall then I think the best we can hope for this season would be a top four finish. And then combine that with a decent run in the Champions League and maybe something from the FA Cup as well.