Moscow shows what Reds can expect From Ralf the boss
WHILE having a manager of Ralf Rangnick’s calibre with such a pronounced style is good for United in the short term, the fact he is set to stay at the club for another two years as a consultant should be the most exciting for Reds fans.
The club has been struggling to keep up with the rest of the league in terms of modernising their standards, but the German might just be the man to take them into the modern-day.
His time at RB Leipzig and with the Red Bull group is a shining testament to that, but by just looking at the short amount of time he spent with Lokomotiv Moscow as managing director of sport and communications, United should be excited.
Since joining Moscow in July, the team has changed radically. They have brought in a new manager, Markus Gisdol, who had been plying his trade in the Bundesliga with FC Koln and Hamburg.
United will have to make a major managerial appointment after Rangnick has finished as interim, but it is hard to equate this signing to a club the size of the Reds. Instead, it’s the additions to the coaching staff which are much more telling.
Rangnick is famous for being the godfather of gegenpressing and, of course, this style of play requires a high level of fitness, therefore he appointed of a new fitness coach.
It will be no surprise if we see a similar member of staff come through the door at United based on the levels we have seen from the team so far this season.
Rangnick’s emphasis on analytics and technology is also key, as he brought in former player Marvin Compper as a match analyst in Russia.
Keeping ahead of the curve has always been important for Rangnick.
At Leipzig, he implemented a system called the Soccerbot360, which he described as: “A machine that simulates previous games and allows players to relive key moments of matches.
“It’s PlayStation football, but with your feet. The players enjoy it so much we have a hard time getting some of them to stop.”
Andrew Meredith is currently United’s chief analyst and it is likely Rangnick will work alongside him to improve the Reds in this regard.
Finally, we get onto scouting, and this is a role in which Rangnick has excelled in the past.
The systems he has created have been responsible for identifying the likes of Sadio Mane, Timo Werner, Dayot Upamecano and Joshua Kimmich, all of whom have gone on to make big moves and have stellar careers.
And at Lokomotiv Moscow he has set out to do the same, hiring a new head of scouting and also a number of scouts underneath him.
United’s player identification over the last few seasons has been questionable and given Solskjaer’s recent need for a new right-back, the system that identified 804 players to come up with Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s name, who United spent £50m on, has come into question.
Overall, fans may be disappointed that United are not appointing a long-term option now with talks between the club and Mauricio Pochettino having been put on hold until the summer, but the appointment of Rangnick signals a change in thinking in the club and that is definitely needed.