MANCHESTER UNITED fans might have been thrilled by the 3-2 win over Arsenal but Ralf Rangnick winced.
Thursday’s Old Trafford game summed up the rollercoaster the club has been on — now Rangnick believes it is time for calm and control.
The new interim chief said: “Against Arsenal we conceded two goals, we needed three to win the game.
“If you look at the total number of goals conceded, it averages almost two per game. This is just too much.
“My approach is to help the team to get more balance, more control of the game.
“The Arsenal match was exciting for the fans but, even for myself as the future coach, those are not the kind of games that we need every day.
“Football, for me, is to minimise the coincidence factor and have control in order to gain control of a game.
“This is football, what it’s about. This is my approach and I’m out to help these outstanding, talented players try to keep away from their own goal.”
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Rangnick has been watching United from afar for some weeks now and can see the glaring deficiencies in the team and what he has to do to put things right.
The German said: “Obviously, I have watched the latest games.
“I watched not only the Arsenal game but also the games against Watford and against Chelsea on TV, when I didn’t know when I would be contacted in the next days.
“I watched, out of interest, the games against Liverpool and Manchester City.
“I’m pretty well aware and acquainted with what is happening here with the club and in the Premier League.
“I think it’s pretty obvious the team have an abundance of talent, young, talented players but enough experienced players in the squad too.
“The major target for me in the next couple of days and weeks is to bring more balance into the team.
“I think to gain control of games in the future has got to do with playing proactively, no matter if we have the ball ourselves or if the other team is in possession of the ball.
“It’s about helping the team to play together. It’s about togetherness, it’s also about team spirit.
“We saw it against Arsenal. If we compare the two halves, the first half and the second half, against Arsenal they were completely different.
“Obviously it’s not easy, I cannot do that in one or two training sessions, not even in one or two weeks.
“It’s not about playing pressing or counter-pressing for pressing’s sake, it’s about control.
“This is the major target.
“The players have to go together with me, they have to follow not only my instructions but they have to buy into the idea that I can offer them how we should want to play in the future. That is what it’s all about.
“It has to happen step by step. It cannot be done within one or two days like this.
“It will not work like that.”
Rangnick believes United are still struggling with the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson 8½ years on and need more stability.
He added: “Having had Sir Alex for 27 years, winning numerous titles, I don’t think there was any other club like that — maybe Guy Roux with Auxerre — like that.
“Having had the same manager for 27 years is unique and exceptional.
“For me it’s not that unusual that after such a long and successful spell the club needs to find the new pathway. There have been changes in management — five managers since Sir Alex left.
“Therefore it was also difficult to gain continuity in regard to signing new players and sticking to the DNA of the club.
“And I think this is vital in modern football that you do that.
“For me it is not that unusual that there were so many changes.
“And I think the board members and myself have the same opinion for the future.
“That it’s important we develop and there will not be that many changes in management.”
Rangnick, 63, is convinced United have the squad to compete for the top four in the Premier League.
But he accepts Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool are more than a few steps ahead of them right now.
The former Schalke, Hoffenheim and Leipzig boss said: “If you look at the top three teams currently, they seem to be very stable and have top coaches, probably some of the best coaches in the world.
“And if you see how they play and how they win in style, controlling the games, this is something we have to develop. But when Jurgen came to Liverpool, the squad he inherited at the time was definitely not a better squad than the one I inherit here now at United.
“I am more than happy with the quality of the players we have here and I am sure — if we can help them to get better in those areas that brought us into the position we are currently in — that we can take the next possible steps.
“That is what it’s all about.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
