Huge things were expected when Manchester United brought Ralf Rangnick in, but very little actually went according to plan.
At first glance, it seemed like the perfect fit. Rangnick, known for his forward-thinking approach and successes in club building, arrived as an interim coach – but with the promise of moving into a key role overseeing recruitment.
It felt like exactly what United needed. Instead, he was gone before any of those plans could take shape.
No one should be surprised that things didn’t work out. Recent comments show just how big the gap was between his philosophy and how United were operating at the time, especially in the transfer market.
Ralf Rangnick explains why he thinks spending big on older players rarely makes sense
Since Rangnick’s exit, there’s been plenty of talk about the players he recommended who were never pursued. Julian Alvarez, for example, was one of his suggestions – and most of those names have since thrived elsewhere.
Speaking to Spanish outlet SPORT, Rangnick explained why he values signing younger players over chasing quick fixes:
“If I were the owner/sporting director, I would only try to sign and invest in young players because no matter how you look at it, it only makes sense. Does it make sense to spend a transfer fee of 30/40/50 million for a 30/28-year-old?
“Let’s make that calculation… you sign a 30/28-year-old, give him a five-year contract. You spend on average 15m/year on wages, times five, that’s 75m. The total is about 110/120m, then there are the agent fees. The whole deal is about 150m. For what?”
Rangnick went on to say:
“You’ll never get that money back. If you’re unlucky, in the last years of his contract, the player doesn’t even play anymore. The only thing you do if you do that is you invest in a possibly greater amount of success in the first few years. This is like a bet. I would never allow doing that, allow that to happen.”
Those comments hit at the core of why it was never going to work between Rangnick and Manchester United. At least not under the Glazers.
Manchester United’s old approach was the complete opposite of Ralf Rangnick’s philosophy
There’s a clear irony in the timing. Now that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS are steering the club toward a youth-focused approach, Rangnick is long gone.
Just after his departure, the club signed Casemiro to a five-year deal. While the Brazilian had an immediate impact, the long-term value of the signing has since come into question.
And Casemiro wasn’t the only example. The Glazer era was filled with signings of older stars – Odion Ighalo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Edinson Cavani, Radamel Falcao and even Cristiano Ronaldo – all expensive, short-term moves with little resale value.
Even as recently as last season, United were still dealing with the fallout, struggling to move on from heavy contracts like Casemiro’s, even after a slight uptick in form.
On the other hand, the sales of younger players like Hannibal Mejbri and Facundo Pellistri showed how potential is far more marketable than pedigree in today’s transfer market.
Fans can take some comfort in knowing that the club’s direction has finally caught up to Rangnick’s vision. Even if he wasn’t the one to implement it, the principles he stood by are now shaping United’s future.
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