Manchester United have confirmed the appointment of Ralf Rangnick as their interim manager till the end of the season. Rangnick who is known for his aggressive high-pressing and lightning fast vertical football tactics will have his task cut out at United. This United squad is unbalanced and are used to playing passive and reactive football under former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. There are several players who might struggle under the German coach as they might not have the right attributes to work in Rangnick’s system.

Welcome to Manchester United, Ralf Rangnick 🔴🇩🇪#MUFC

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) November 29, 2021

Although Rangnick has preferred formations like the 4-4-2 and the 3-4-3 during his career, considering the squad composition at United, he is expected to choose the 4-2-3-1 formation. This will allow, United’s two key attacking players in Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes to play in their favoured positions.

Man United starting lineup and formation against Arsenal

We expect Rangnick to play with a double pivot of Fred and Donny Van de Beek, both of them are comfortable in pressing aggressively. All the attacking players will be expected to press high, although Ronaldo might be given some leeway in this aspect. It would be interesting to see how Rangnick handles Cristiano Ronaldo as the Portuguese barely presses nowadays.

Both the fullbacks, Shaw (if fit) and Wan-Bissaka will be expected to push forward and press the opposition wingers. Pressing high will give United opportunities to counter Arsenal but also can open up spaces for the Arsenal attack to exploit if they manage to bypass the press like Liverpool did when they beat United 5-0.