‘Either you are pregnant or not’ – How Man Utd interim boss Ralf Rangnick describes his exhausting Gegenpressing style
RALF RANGNICK is sure to have his Manchester United players working hard as soon as he arrives at Old Trafford.
Rangnick is famed for being the brainchild behind the high intensity Gegenpressing tactic, and has previously likened the concept to ‘being pregnant’.
The 63-year-old claimed it’s impossible to press ‘a little bit’, much like it’s impossible to be pregnant ‘a little bit’.
In a video on The Coaches Voice YouTube channel, the incoming Manchester United boss said: “You need to be aware what kind of football you really want to play.
“A little bit of pressing? Come on, what is a little bit of pressing?
“A little bit of pressing is like a little bit of pregnant. Either you are pregnant or not?
“Either you want to play pressing or not?”
And you can be sure Rangnick will bring his exhausting style of play – which involves pressing from the front at breakneck – speed to Manchester United.
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How that goes down with 36-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo remains to be seen.
The forward certainly keeps himself in excellent shape though and has the physique to keep up with Rangnick’s tactics.
And what is evident is that Rangnick’s philosophy is a successful one.
He recruits players specifically under the age of 23-years-old who are targeted as being easily adaptable and able to hack his gruelling physical demands.
Rangnick is responsible for discovering the likes of Erling Haaland, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Timo Werner.
The similarity between all those players being their willingness to run themselves into the ground for their team.
United are hoping Rangnick can pull off another masterstroke with Haaland, using their relationship to lure the Borussia Dortmund star to Old Trafford.
Nicknamed ‘The Professor,’ Rangnick has also influenced two of the most successful current bosses in the Premier League with his tactics.
He is said to have inspired Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel, as well as Bayern Munich supremo Julian Nagelsman with his style of play.
And Red Devils bigwigs were immdiately impressed when interviewing Rangnick because he is the complete OPPOSITE to the sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
The German prefers his famed tactical approach, whereas Solskjaer opted to go down the motivational route with his management style.
But seven defeats in 13 games Solskjaer to get the axe, with the club now set to go down a different road entirely when it comes to managerial style.
Read our Manchester United live blog for the latest news and transfer gossip from Old Trafford