Ralf Rangnick hits back after Paul Scholes questions German’s ability to manage Manchester United

A year after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer led United to a 9-0 victory against Southampton at an empty Old Trafford, his interim successor watched the Red Devils waste Jadon Sancho’s first-half goal on Saturday lunchtime.

 

Che Adams scored an amazing equalizer just after halftime, and Saints had chances to capture a rare win against United, whose profligacy in front of goal resulted in a third consecutive 1-1 draw.

 

On Saturday, United legend Paul Scholes stated that the players did not want to put in the effort for the club, which Rangnick dismissed, stating it was more about the group’s mentality.

 

“I believe Paul Scholes mentioned only one-third of what he said – I believe he said three distinct alternatives,” Rangnick remarked.

 

“I don’t think the players are unwilling to do it because they don’t want to give away points like they did today again.”

 

“It was the third game in a row when we were 1-0 up, and I don’t think anyone should say the guys don’t care.” That they prefer to have such experiences today in a row. This is most emphatically not the case.

 

“The challenge is, how do we get more compact, more aggressive, and even more nasty with the bunch of players we have? It’s about defending a lead.”

 

“This is the biggest difficulty, but it’s not a matter of the players refusing to do it.”

 

Rangnick elaborated on his remark on unpleasantness, saying, “Well, they can be harsh, but the question is for how long and at what times.”

 

“Again, if I look at the game, the goal we conceded tonight, similar to at Burnley, it’s just too simple.” It’s far too simple.

 

“It wasn’t even difficult for Burnley or Southampton to score these goals today, and it was the same against Middlesbrough.”

 

“If you are being counter-attacked after leading 1-0, it is also an issue of tactical discipline and being aggressive in key times and just not allowing the players to go past you.”

 

Rangnick also emphasized United’s struggles in converting chances into goals, as Cristiano Ronaldo’s goalless streak reached the sixth meeting.

 

“Our squad has a lot of technical players, a lot of offensively behaving and thinking players, and it’s difficult for them to stay compact for a longer length of time, for the entire game,” he explained.

 

“This is one of our issues. The other issue is that we don’t take advantage of the opportunities that we create. We had a projected goals ratio of 2.57 to 0.7 against Southampton today.”

 

Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes was harsh in his criticism of Rangnick’s team and the club’s decision to hire the German.

 

“It’s been a pretty tough six or seven months, you think the season hasn’t been good enough,” Scholes told BT Sport.

 

“We all knew Ole was going to be fired, but we were all wondering where the strategy was.” There must be a plan, and an elite, top coach must be brought in to revitalize the football team.

 

“It’s Manchester United, they should have the best of everything, and to not have a plan and bring in what is a sporting director – he’s coached a team two years out of the previous ten – he’s coached a team two years out of the last ten.”

 

“Don’t get me wrong: I like the man; he comes across nicely, but he appears to have lacked coaching over the last five or six years.” Take a look at the gap between Manchester United and Southampton today.

 

“Southampton were terrific; the coaching, methods, and periods of play were all fantastic.” Take a look at Manchester United; they were all over the place.”

 

Rangnick will be hoping for a response when United play Brighton on Tuesday night, as former RB Leipzig teammate Ralph Hasenhuttl relaxes after a memorable few days.

 

Adams equalized at Old Trafford after scoring the game-winning goal in Wednesday’s 3-2 triumph over Tottenham.

 

“It’s entertaining to see, and I think the boys want to play football in the moment,” Hasenhuttl said, adding that “it’s not a great secret that when (United) lose the ball, their reverse gear isn’t always the best.”

 

“They’re extremely switched on every week, and I think we’ve demonstrated that we can play a good game.” I believe that going from 0-9 to 1-1 is more than enough! We lost here about a year ago in a game where we had no chance.

 

“But we’re a different team now, with all the guys we sought to keep at the club and signed in the summer, we have a lot more choices.”

 

“I believe we had a good transfer window, and the rest is about building on your habits and qualities every day.” I believe we have demonstrated that we are improving.”