Cristiano’s the fittest player I have ever seen at that age
Rangnick. ‘He was very generous to spend one and a half hours on the phone with me telling me his insight and details about the team. ‘I met with Michael two days ago and had a conversation with him for more than an hour. I was trying to convince him to stay on board, but he had obviously taken the decision weeks ago that he needed a break after 30 years in professional football. ‘I’m more than happy to work with the current coaching staff because I need their experience and expertise regarding the squad. I will try to find people who can join us but due to the Brexit regulations it’s not easy. ‘Many of my former colleagues are in long-term contracts with big clubs so are not available right now.’ New York Red Bulls boss Gerhard Struber has been linked with the job of assistant manager. Rangnick was at Old Trafford on Thursday night to see Cristiano Ronaldo score twice in a 3-2 win over Arsenal, and insisted that it
will not be a problem adapting the Portugal star into his fabled gegenpressing approach. ‘You always have to adapt your style or idea of football to the players you have available, not vice versa,’ he said. ‘Having seen Cristiano yesterday, at his age I’ve never seen a player who is still that physically fit. He’s still a player who can easily make the difference. ‘So it’s about how we can develop the whole team, not only Cristiano. What I saw from
Cristiano, he is more than willing to do that, to put his input into the team. His team-mates will have to do the same. ‘It’s not about pressing for pressing’s sake, it’s about control. This is the major target.’ Rangnick rubbished speculation that he will receive a £10million bonus if he helps United sign Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund, having played a part in the striker’s move from Molde to Red Bull Salzburg in 2019. ‘Let me have a look,’ he joked. ‘OK, £10m for Erling Haaland, £10m for Kylian Mbappe, £10m for Robert Lewandowski and £10m for Joshua Kimmich. ‘This is nonsense, there are no such clauses in my contract. I’m more than happy with the strike power we have here.’ Meanwhile, Ronaldo’s transfer from Juventus is being looked into as part of a wider probe of the Italian club’s finances. Sportsmail revealed earlier this week that Fabio Paratici, now Tottenham director of football, is among the individuals under investigation.