Premier League
Behind-the-scenes work will be Ralf Rangnick’s key contribution to Man United, says Peter Schmeichel
BY SAZALI ABDUL AZIZ
In the two matches he has overseen as Manchester United manager, Ralf Rangnick has already introduced a more urgent, pressing style of play. Yet the most significant change the German will bring to the club, believes Red Devils legend Peter Schmeichel, will be off the pitch.
On the sidelines of the JSSL Singapore FA Cup at Our Tampines Hub on Saturday (Dec 11), the former goalkeeper noted in a chat with The Straits Times that Rangnick has a different profile from the four previous managers that have been at the helm since long-serving manager Alex Ferguson stepped down in 2013.
Rangnick, who previously managed German clubs like Schalke and RB Leipzig, was the head of sports and development at Russian side Lokomotiv Moscow before he joined United on Nov 29.
Said Schmeichel: “He has come in with a certain reputation of… how he structures a football department and how he sets up everything that we don’t see on the pitch and behind the scenes, how he develops coaches as well and how he leads.
“These are all incredibly important attributes and I think it is important for Man United at this moment in time to have somebody who’s good at that.”
After Ferguson retired, his replacements – David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and then Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who was sacked on Nov 21 – were managers in the traditional sense but struggled to replicate the Scot’s success over 26 years, when he won 38 trophies that included 13 English Premier League (EPL) titles.
This is why Schmeichel believes the “new direction” for the Red Devils’ backroom set-up under the guidance of Rangnick and technical director Darren Fletcher is the right way forward.
Noting the influence of the latter, the Dane, who played 398 games for United from 1991 to 1999 and won five EPL titles, three FA Cups and a Champions League crown, said: “In the last three games he (Fletcher) has been in the technical area, and I had the pleasure of being at the Arsenal game (a 3-2 win on Dec 3) and actually very close to the technical areas.
“And I was very impressed with Darren Fletcher… I never played with him but I know him quite well. And it gives me confidence that Darren’s been in the decision-making (of hiring Rangnick) because I believe he will know precisely what needs to be done.
“I can hope for these changes to be implemented at the club (and) hopefully it’s going in the right direction.”
On Saturday morning, Schmeichel, 58, spent an hour with 10 aspiring goalkeepers aged between 12 and 16, sharing tips and practising goalkeeping drills.
“It’s my first visit today in this fantastic venue,” he said. “It’s so great to see kids play football and kids being happy on a football pitch. We’ve got this wonderful tournament here – the JSSL Singapore FA Cup – and… kids are playing football, they’re back on the pitch enjoying this wonderful sport and this tournament, it’s an incredible event.”
The JSSL Singapore FA Cup kicked off on Dec 10 and will conclude on Dec 12 with the Cup and Plate finals. A total of 144 teams of vaccinated boys and girls, aged 12 to 17, are taking part in the four-a-side tournament.
-Straits Times
Thomas Partey, who formerly played for English Premier League soccer club Arsenal, has been charged with rape and sexual assault, London’s Metropolitan Police said on Friday.
Partey, a Ghana international, was charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, with the charges relating to three women and the offences reported to have taken place between 2021 and 2022, the statement said.
Partey’s management did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
He is due to appear at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Aug. 5.
Partey, 32, was signed by Arsenal from Atletico Madrid for 50 million euros ($59 million) in October 2020 and became a key member of Arsenal’s first team.
He was first arrested in July 2022, though he was not named at the time and continued to play for Arsenal while investigations were ongoing.
-Reuters
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Five players including England forward Marcus Rashford and Argentina winger Alejandro Garnacho have informed Manchester United that they wish to explore a future away from the Premier League side, a club source said on Friday.
Brazilian midfielder Antony, Dutch defender Tyrell Malacia and England international Jadon Sancho are also looking to leave the club, the source added.
Rashford, who has made more than 400 senior appearances for United, has fallen out of favour with manager Ruben Amorim, played for Aston Villa on loan while United had their worst-ever Premier League campaign, finishing 15th in the standings.
Amorim had called Rashford’s work rate into question, saying he would rather put a goalkeeper coach on the bench than a player not giving their all.
Rashford said he was feeling fitter and better since joining Villa, where he scored two goals in 10 league appearances.
United also failed to qualify for the Champions League as they lost the Europa League final 1-0 to Tottenham Hotspur. Garnacho, who was a late substitute in the final, voiced his displeasure on social media after the loss.
“Up until the final, I played every round helping the team, and today I play 20 minutes, I don’t know,” he wrote in a post . “The final will influence (my decision), but the whole season, the situation of the club.”
Sancho was on loan at Chelsea, where he made 31 league appearances last season. Antony, who joined United from Ajax Amsterdam in 2022 for a reported initial transfer fee of more than $100 million, scored five goals in 17 LaLiga appearances on loan at Real Betis.
Malacia joined Dutch side PSV Eindhoven on loan in February.
-Reuters
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Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes turned down the opportunity to join Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal in order to keep playing “at the highest level”, he said on Tuesday.
The Portuguese midfielder admitted that he had considered the move, which media reports said was worth four times his current salary, after being contacted by Al-Hilal’s president.
“There was that possibility, the president of Al-Hilal called me a month ago to ask me about it,” Fernandes, who is preparing to face Germany with Portugal, told reporters on Tuesday.
“It was a big offer, very ambitious. There was a waiting period for me to think about the future.”
Fernandes ultimately decided to stay at United and said he was motivated by his desire to continue playing at the top level and encouraged by his family and the club’s coach Ruben Amorim.
“I would be willing to do it if Manchester United thought so,” Fernandes added. “I spoke to the coach Ruben Amorim who really tried to talk me out of it. The club said they would not be willing to sell me, only if I wanted to leave.
“I spoke to my wife and family, and she asked me what my personal goals were in my career.
“It would have been easy to move there but I want to keep myself at the highest level, playing in the big competitions and I feel capable of it. I am happy with my decision.”
The 30-year-old Fernandes scored 19 goals and provided 19 assists in 57 appearances across all competitions for United last season, winning the club’s Player of the Year award for the fourth time.
However, it was a season to forget for the team, as they finished 15th in the Premier League, their lowest league finish in half a century, and lost the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur.
-Reuters
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