Manchester United interim manager, Ralf Rangnick will not go into war with Cristiano Ronaldo at Old Trafford because he needs the Portugal captain on his side for both the short and long term.
This claim was made by former Norway international, Jan Aage Fjortoft.
Rangnick has been appointed Man United interim manager until the end of the season.
The 63-yar-old will then take up a two-year consultancy role at Man United.
The German is famed for a ‘gegenpressing’ style, an approach many feel will not be suited to Ronaldo, who was left out of Man United’s starting XI against Chelsea last weekend.
However, Fjortoft believes Rangnick will need Ronaldo firing for the next two reasons, adding that his performance could save the former RB Leipzig head coach from the sack before his six-month tenure comes to an end.
“First of all, Ralf Rangnick is the professor of German football and he goes in there [Manchester United] with a great reputation, but he will have the same rules as any other coach – he has to win football games,” Fjortoft told ESPN FC.
“If you have a look at the scoring list of Manchester United, he has scored 10, Ronaldo.
“Maybe Cristiano Ronaldo will save Ralf Rangnick. Do you think that he will stay on until the summer if Manchester United are eighth?
“For me, it’s quite easy. If Ralf Rangnick can’t handle Cristiano Ronaldo, he’s not a great coach.
“The greatest coaches of this world have always managed to work with the best and most difficult characters.
“So if Ralf Rangnick can’t do that, he won’t be a good coach.”
“So I think he will find a way and I also think that they have talked about this before,” Fjortoft added.
“I don’t think Ralf Rangnick arrived at Old Trafford before Cristiano Ronaldo was told, or Jorge Mendes.
“In the short term, he needs results. We’re talking about this gegenpressing and everything he’s learned, what I am saying is in the short term, before he has his team [playing that way] he has to find a way, because he’s said to Manchester United.
“I don’t think the first thing he will do is to go into a war with Cristiano Ronaldo. I can’t see him doing that.”
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