Amidst turmoil at possibly the world’s biggest football clubs, in terms of revenue, reputation, and performance, it looks as if current Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could soon lose his job, with many news outlets suggesting that the Norwegian former Manchester United legend could well face the sack in the coming days.
United have gone through a patch of terrible performances, picking up only four out of a possible 18 points in the Premier League since the start of the season. The Champions League hasn’t been a lot better for the Red Devils, who have managed to pick up a scratchy win and a draw against Atalanta in the previous two matchdays, having initially trailed by two goals in both games, showing gaping holes in their back-line.
There have been quite a few names discussed as potential candidates to take over from Solskjaer, including Zinedine Zidane, Erik ten Haag, Mauricio Pochettino, and former Liverpool and current Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers. However, none of these have amounted to anything beyond speculation for the moment.
Following their historic 5-0 defeat at the hands of arch-rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford in the Premier League a few weeks ago, Solskjaer’s time at United looked to have ended, and Antonio Conte was being touted to be the Red Devils’ next coach.
Despite these rumours, which were being put out by many reputable sources, the plan seemed to have fallen through after reports emerged that the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson had blocked the move, keeping Solskjaer in charge. The Italian has since accepted a managerial position at Tottenham Hotspur, who sacked their manager Nuno Espirito Santo after a 3-0 loss to Manchester United themselves.
Nevertheless, social media was rife with rumours and speculation, with one particularly intriguing name doing the rounds. Ralf Rangnick, who has been described as “the father of Gegenpressing”, was reportedly open to accepting an offer from Man United, who were also interested in securing his services, as per multiple reports.
The German, who is currently head of sports and development at Russian club Lokomotiv Moscow, and previously held positions at RB Leipzig and RB Salzburg, and instilled an excellent system of attacking football, is a name that has got many United supporters excited.
Ragnick described his style of play in an interview a few months ago:
“We like to press high, with a very intense counter-pressure. When we have the ball, we do not like any square or back passes.
The goalkeeper also should not be the one with the most contact on the ball. In almost every league and every country, the goalkeeper is technically the most limited football player on the pitch and therefore we have to make sure that he has the lowest contact with the feet.
It is a fast, proactive, attacking, counter-attacking, counter-pressing, exciting and entertaining style of football.”
Reputed German journalist Christian Falk also confirmed the news, saying that Ragnick seems to be very interested in the United project, and would be willing to accept a coaching role if offered.
There were also stories that Ragnick would only assume an interim manager’s role and would move to a Director of Football position over the summer, should a like-minded coach join the Red Devils.
However, things seemed to have lost pace as the United board reportedly feel that Ragnick would be “demanding” and not an “easy personality to work with”. Therefore, it remains to be seen as to what will transpire at Old Trafford as Solskjaer’s job hangs in the balance.
