Ralf Rangnick is hoping to help Manchester United back to their glory days, but the German is continuing to pay the price for the mistakes of his predecessor, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
The Norwegian signed Cristiano Ronaldo, Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane, but the trio did not solve the Red Devils’ core issue.
The media hype of the hat-trick of marquee signings proved a very short-term fix for the team’s lack of star quality in midfield, and Solskjaer was sacked as result.
United supporters will be hoping that, given reports that he will be well-backed next month, Rangnick will be able to solve the very avoidable issue soon.
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However, the news that Liverpool are preparing a move for Real Madrid midfielder Eduardo Camavinga, according to El Nacional, will be a kick in the teeth for the club.
The Red Devils were interested in signing the Frenchman over the summer but instead, the 19-year-old put pen to paper on a six-year deal at the Santiago Bernabeu.
However, the deal hasn’t worked out too well thus far for the midfielder and he is reportedly unhappy with his lack of game time and his manager, Carlo Ancelotti, being unwilling to let him complete full 90-minute games when he does play.
Liverpool are considering seizing the opportunity as a short-term resolution for their injury woes. A strengthened midfield at Anfield will only see Jurgen Klopp’s side distance themselves even further from United in regards to quality and points.
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In the meantime, Rangnick will be continuing his search to bolster his options in the centre of the park and improve upon Nemanja Matic and Scott McTominay.
With Paul Pogba undecided as to where his future lies when his contract expires at the end of the season and Donny van de Beek likely to be sold or loaned out in January, the midfield is now more a priority than ever.
According to Manchester Evening News, Solskjaer was infuriated that he wasn’t able to sign a player to slot into his two-man pivot over the summer due to the unattainable options available to him.
Declan Rice, worth £100million, was deemed ‘out of budget’ and talks were held with Camavinga but they were unable to persuade the midfield maestro not to move to Madrid.
Had Solskjaer had been firmer in his cry for an upgrade in an integral part of his team then Rangnick would have been able to focus his attention elsewhere this summer.
Defensively, United still don’t look great and there is a lack of quality sat on the United bench, but instead the former RB Leipzig manager is searching for a midfielder.
According to The Athletic, Rangnick wants to sign a ‘tall midfielder’ in order to replace Matic but has similar qualities to the 33-year-old – who appears to be coming to the end of his time at Old Trafford.
Though Camavinga doesn’t possess the towering, domineering traits of the Serbian, a midfielder may not have been top of Rangnick’s shopping list next month had the former Rennes star had joined.
It remains to be seen who Rangnick is able to persuade to come to the Theatre of Dreams, and whether more cracks start to show in a squad largely built by Solskjaer previously.
