Ralf Rangnick was brought in as the interim manager of Manchester United in the middle of the previous campaign, after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was shown the exit door. There was a lot of excitement surrounding the move as well, as the German was considered as the creator of Gegenpressing and one of the most innovative coaches in modern football. Many even believed that he was good enough to be handed the job permanently.
In hindsight, it was not the right appointment on the part of Manchester United. Rangnick failed to turn things around as the Red Devils continued to struggle, ultimately finishing the campaign without a single piece of silverware and having failed to qualify for the Champions League.
Thus, it was pretty clear towards the end of the season that the club would try to bring in a new manager but it was a bit of surprise when Rangnick decided not to take the two-year consultancy role with Manchester United, that he was expected to.
Now, it looks like Ten Hag might have had a role to play in that decision as well, with Rangnick now serving as the manager of the Austrian national team.
Ten Hag’s role in Rangnick’s Manchester United exit this summer
As reported by ESPN, sources said that Manchester United and Rangnick agreed to go their separate ways at the end of the season in part because of Ten Hag’s reluctance to work with the German in his proposed consultancy role.
Ten Hag comes with a big reputation from his time at Ajax and as a result, Manchester United should give him every chance to succeed.
At the same time though, the Dutchman will have a lot to prove as well. Succeeding at Manchester United is a whole different ball game and on top of that, he has never managed a top flight club outside of the Netherlands.