£17m update may be real reason Man United appointed Rangnick – pundit
Man United appointed Ralf Rangnick as a stop-gap for “first choice” Mauricio Pochettino, according to Noel Whelan.
The former Leeds striker, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, claimed the Red Devils could make another attempt to secure the 49-year-old in the summer.
As reported by Telefoot (November 28th), Paris Saint-Germain were reportedly willing to let Pochettino join Man United on two conditions.
The French club were looking for a compensation package of £17million and also stipulated that Zinedine Zidane must come in as the former Spurs manager’s replacement.
Man United instead announced the appointment of Rangnick yesterday on an interim basis until the end of the season.
“I think it all came down to Pochettino, he was their first choice,” he told Football Insider‘s Ewan Kingsbury.
“PSG wouldn’t allow it – they didn’t want it to happen mid-season without a replacement.
“Man United maybe didn’t want to pay out his contract, so they’ve had to leave it to someone temporary. Maybe they’ll go back in the summer.
“They’ve got a tactician in Rangnick – he’s full of footballing philosophy. He’ll help them in the time he is there, and then he can transition into that director role behind the scenes and leave it nice and tidy for that new manager to come in.
“There’s no doubt they needed that strong personality to get the point across and deal with what is surely a difficult dressing room. It’s a good move.”
Rangnick has been at the helm of clubs like Schalke and RB Leipzig in a long managerial career.
Pochettino is out of contract in the French capital at the end of next season.
In other news, Kieran Maguire has slammed Ed Woodward talks with Boris Johnson after ‘very strange’ development at Man United.