Bad News: We are loosing stars to rivals thanks to the Glazers

Ralf Rangnick reportedly made cases for up to nine elite players to come on board at Manchester United during his tenure.

Following the Red Devils’ dismissal of Ole Gunner Solskjær, Rangnick was appointed interim manager on 29 November 2021.

Following his short period at the helm of United, the 65-year-old was due to continue in a consultancy role for a further two years. On 2 December 2021, the German’s work permit was approved and in his first game in charge, he helped guide the side to a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace.

However, following a 4-0 loss to Liverpool later in the season, Ragnick expressed that United needed to heavily invest in the upcoming transfer window.

He believed that his temporary team were “six years behind” Jurgen Klopp’s Reds, and that United would need to conduct ‘open-heart’ surgery if they wanted to grace the top of the Premier League table again.

After steering the club to sixth place, Rangnick ended up leaving the consultancy role on the table to became the manager of the Austrian national team.

However, during his time at United, the former VfR Heilbronn player supposedly put nine “realistic” transfer targets to the board.

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One of which was 25-year-old Christopher Nkunku, who of course signed with Chelsea from RB Leipzig this summer.

The second and third were Manchester City duo, Julian Alvarez and Erling Haaland. Both ended up signing with Pep Guardiola’s squad ahead of last season.

Another recent City signing which Rangnick had his eye on was Josko Gvardiol.

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This summer, the 21-year-old was reported to have become the second most expensive defender in the world after his transfer fee was reported at around £77 million.

A fifth player Rangnick wanted to bring to Old Trafford was Austrian midfielder Konrad Laimer.

Like Nkunku and Josko, the 26-year-old was plying his trade at RB Leipzig until this summer transfer window. However, Laimer now plays under Thomas Tuchel at Bayern Munich.

Spanish captain Alvaro Morato, and Blues midfielder Enzo Fernandez were two more players which Rangnick believed could improve United’s chances.

Much like the rest of the world at the time, the German was also after Dusan Vlahovic after he was awarded the Serie A Best Young Player award.

However the latter signed for Juventus in January 2022 on a four-and-a-half-year contract worth £60m.

The final name on Rangnick’s list was Liverpool winger Luis Diaz. However, instead of opting for Manchester United, the star signed for United’s rivals in a deal worth £37.5m.

Manchester United are reportedly planning to strengthen the backline next year and have already shortlisted three players to do that, as per the transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.

The Red Devils were looking to reinforce their centre-back in the recently concluded summer window and several players were linked with a move to Old Trafford. But, United couldn’t manage to sign anyone before the deadline so Erik ten Hag has been forced to continue with the pre-existing defensive options this season.

However, having failed to sign a new centre-back in the summer, Ten Hag is now planning to bolster the defence in the upcoming transfer window.

Writing on Twitter, Romano has reported that Man Utd are considering making a move for a new defender and they have already started internal discussions ahead of a potential move next year.

The journalist further claims that Man Utd have already shortlisted Jean-Clair Todibo, Edmond Tapsoba and Antonio Silva as serious targets and United’s scouts have been watching them closely in recent times.

Need for Reinforcements

Romano also says that the trio won’t be the only option for Man Utd to bolster their defence as more defenders could be included in Ten Hag’s wish-list over the coming months.

Romano said:

“Manchester United considering to invest on new important defender in 2024 as internal discussion start. Todibo remains on the list, Tapsoba and Antonio Silva also tracked by scouts — more names could be added in the next months.”

With Harry Maguire struggling to showcase his best in recent years and Raphael Varane persistently suffering from injury issues since joining the club, purchasing a new centre-back would be the right decision for Man Utd.

The record Premier League champions have signed Jonny Evans on a one-year deal to add depth to their defence this summer. But, the 35-year-old is a short-term signing and United need a long-term solution to achieve success going forward.

Todibo, Tapsoba and Silva have already established themselves as an integral part of their respective club’s starting eleven over the last few seasons so, any of them would be a great signing for Man Utd.

Therefore, it is going to be interesting to see who Man Utd will eventually opt to sign in the upcoming transfer window to reinforce their backline.