Premier League
Who is Ralf Rangnick? Everything you need to know about Manchester United interim manager
Manchester United have reached an agreement to appoint Ralf Rangnick as their interim manager, but just who is the new man in temporary charge at Old Trafford?
The 63-year-old German will take up the managerial role on a six-month deal until the end of May, before moving into in a consultancy role at the club for an initial two-year period.
Rangnick was identified as United’s preferred choice for the interim vacancy after an interview process earlier this week which saw a five-man shortlist of managers considered for the role.
Here is everything you need to know about the current head of sports and development at Lokomotiv Moscow ahead of his Old Trafford appointment.
Name: Ralf Rangnick
Date of Birth: 29 June 1958
Rangnick had a rather uneventful playing career before he moved into a player-coaching role at VfB Stuttgart. He spent a year at English side Southwick while he studied at the University of Sussex before returning to his homeland.
Upon his return to Germany he continued to play for the best part of a decade at a range of lower league clubs as he continued to learn about coaching.
Coaching career
Rangnick got his break coaching at his hometown club Viktoria Backnang and finished his playing career as a player-coach for Stuttgart II and TSV Lippoldsweiler.
He continued coaching in the lower divisions of German football for a number of years before he was given the chance to manage former side Stuttgart in the Bundesliga but was sacked after a difficult second season at the club.
He moved onto Hannover and earned promotion to the German top-flight. He applied to be the assistant manager of the German national side but missed out on the role to Joachim Low.
Rangnick enjoyed future success at Hoffenheim and across two spell at Schalke. In his second spell the side won the German Cup, German Super Cup and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League where they were beaten by United.
The German stepped out of coaching for a while to become director of football for both Red Bull Leipzig and Salzburg, with the German side rising from the fourth division all the way to the Bundesliga under his guidance.
He is also credited with overseeing their expansion into European football, particularly within their recruitment of unproven players and an exciting brand of attacking football on the pitch.
Rangnick managed Leipzig on two spells where they achieved promotion to the top-flight, finished runners up in the German Cup and established themselves as regulars in the Bundesliga.
He left Leipzig last year after a protracted move to AC Milan collapsed and joined Lokomotiv in the summer.
Coaching legacy
Rangnick is known as a ‘professor of football’ and has been credited for influencing modern German coaches Jurgen Klopp, Thomas Tuchel, Ralph Hasenhuttl and Julian Nagelsmann.https://get-latest.convrse.media/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.manchestereveningnews.co.uk%2Fsport%2Ffootball%2Ffootball-news%2Frangnick-manchester-united-manager-wiki-22276818&cre=bottom&cip=33&view=web
The experienced coach played a key role in establishing the gegenpress tactic where a team immediately fights to win the ball back after losing possession rather than dropping deep.
He is also known as one of the pioneers for zonal marking from set-pieces with his sides well known for a high-pressing game as well as a tendency to play on the front foot.
“If you want to increase the speed of your game, you have to develop quicker minds rather than quicker feet,” he said. “At RB Leipzig, we work on increasing the memory space and the processing pace. We put players into the Soccerbot, for example – 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.
“Tactics, fitness and rules are all hugely important, but they’re only a means to an end. My job – the job – is to improve players. Players follow you as a manager if they feel that you make them better. That’s the greatest, most sincere motivation there is.”
Premier League
Manchester United tighten hold on third in the Premier League with win over Aston Villa
Manchester United’s Matheus Cunha buried a second‑half strike off a pinpoint through ball from Bruno Fernandes for a club-record 16th Premier League assist in a season to lift the hosts to a 3-1 victory over Aston Villa on Sunday.
Casemiro and substitute Benjamin Sesko scored United’s other goals in a result that tightened United’s grip on third place in the standings on 54 points after 30 games, while fourth-placed Villa have 51 points.
United, who were playing their first game in 11 days, were keen for a victory after interim boss Michael Carrick’s seven-game unbeaten run ended in a 2-1 loss to 10-man Newcastle United on March 4.
With 22 points from a possible 27 under Carrick’s leadership, Sunday’s win will invariably lead to more questions about his chances of becoming United’s permanent manager.
“It was a slightly different game today going into it being so close in the league and making the small jump we could if we won, off the back of a defeat,” Carrick said. “It was a small test and we haven’t really had that.
“The boys dealt with it really well, had a really good week and applied themselves well. Everything is so so encouraging. We’ve got a lot to play for.”
The game looked headed for a draw before Cunha scored from the left side of the box in the 71st minute, with Fernandes recording his 100th assist for the club across all competitions.
With eight games left, Fernandes is also four shy of matching the Premier League record for assists in one season of 20 held by Thierry Henry (2002-03) and Kevin de Bruyne (2019-20).
“He’s had so many big moments, to score a goal, to make a pass,” Carrick said of Fernandes. “Training or games, he’s always there. Really good with the corner. The pass to Matheus was fantastic to cap off a good performance all around.”
Sesko put the game out of reach 10 minutes later with a blistering shot from the centre of the box.
Casemiro put United ahead in the 53rd minute with a glancing header from a Fernandes corner.
Ross Barkley levelled in the 64th with a shot from the middle of the area. After a lengthy VAR check to determine whether the ball glanced off an offside Amadou Onana, the goal stood.
A better second half salvaged a decent game after a dreary first 45 minutes plagued by errant passes and slipping players.
United did have some decent first-half chances including a header from Amad Diallo that goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez stretched backwards to keep out of the net. Diogo Dalot had a terrific chance inside the box that he launched over the bar.
Leny Yoro’s block spoiled one of Villa’s best chances and led to a long-range shot from Fernandes at the other end that he sent just wide of the post.
Villa have not won a league game since February 11, and an animated manager Unai Emery spent much of the afternoon stomping his feet and waving his arms in frustration.
“How we are progressing after we did fantastic months in October, November, December, the last two months we are struggling,” Emery said. “It’s Manchester United here at home, and they are now in good moment. And of course, they played a very intelligent match.
“I think we can get better. The result at the end was a bad result for us. We must accept it and try to analyse now to get better for the next challenge.”
-Reuters
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England and Manchester United defender Harry Maguire has been handed a 15-month suspended prison sentence by a Greek court over a 2020 incident in Mykonos, Sky Sports reported on Wednesday.
In 2020, Maguire was found guilty of repeated bodily harm, attempted bribery and violence against public employees after his arrest in a brawl in which two police officers were assaulted.
Maguire, who was detained for two days following the incident and denied any wrongdoing, was handed a suspended prison sentence of 21 months and 10 days but was granted a full retrial after appealing against Greek court convictions on multiple charges.
In accordance with the Greek judicial process, the filing nullified Maguire’s conviction before a full retrial in a more senior court. His retrial was postponed many times.
Maguire faced allegations of non-serious assault, resisting arrest and attempted bribery. The 32-year-old was convicted on all three counts but will face no prison time. His legal team will appeal against the guilty verdict, Sky Sports reported.
Maguire’s brother Joe and friend Christopher Sharman were also found guilty of offences related to the incident and received suspended prison sentences in 2020. They also denied any wrongdoing.
-Reuters
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Arsenal maintained control of the Premier League title race as they chiselled out a nervy 2-1 win over London rivals Chelsea to open up a five-point lead at the top of the table on Sunday.
Jurrien Timber’s 66th-minute header from a Declan Rice corner ensured Arsenal took three precious points, but it was a nervy afternoon in north London.
Mikel Arteta’s side moved to 64 points from 29 games, with Manchester City, who have played a game fewer, on 59.
Arsenal’s Jurrien Timber celebrates scoring their second goal with Gabriel Magalhaes REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Defender William Saliba had given Arsenal the lead in the 21st minute from a trademark corner routine.
But it had looked as though an own goal by Piero Hincapie just before halftime would prove costly for the hosts until Timber came to their rescue.
Chelsea, whose six-match unbeaten league sequence under new manager Liam Rosenior was halted, ended the match with 10 men after Pedro Neto was sent off for a second yellow card.
-Reuters
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