Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has thrown his weight behind comments made by former interim boss Ralf Rangnick on the rot at the club
Rangnick had said back then that United needed “open-heart” surgery.
Ten Hag, 54, was appointed manager in 2022 after Rangnick’s seven months in charge.
The German, now in charge of Austria, guided United to sixth in the Premier League but won just 11 of his 29 matches.
Rangnick concluded that the club required “open-heart” surgery and their troubles could not be solved through “minor changes”.
Ten Hag, who signed a one-year contract extension this month, says Rangnick’s analysis was correct.
“Rangnick was absolutely right,” Ten Hag said in an interview with Dutch newspaper AD Sportwereld.
United have undergone major changes off the pitch since Sir Jim Ratcliffe acquired a 27.7% stake in the club last December.
Omar Berrada, Dan Ashworth, Jason Wilcox and Christopher Vivell have all joined in positions at board level this year, while the club have committed £50m to improving the training ground.
Forward Joshua Zirkzee and defender Leny Yoro have joined from Bologna and Lille respectively in the past week, while Ten Hag has confirmed interest in Bayern Munich and Netherlands centre-back Matthijs de Ligt.
Despite working with De Ligt at former club Ajax, Ten Hag says it was United’s scouting department that suggested the centre-back as a transfer target.
Ten Hag also confirmed that forward Jadon Sancho, who last appeared for the club in August 2023 and spent the second half of last season on loan at Dortmund after falling out with the manager, is available again for selection.
Sancho and Yoro both started as goals from Amad Diallo and Joe Hugill saw United beat Rangers 2-0 at Murrayfield in a friendly on Saturday.
Ten Hag Backs Rangnick’s Assessment Of Man Utd Problems
