Ralf Rangnick has made it clear that he won’t be shy to recommend staying on as manager beyond this season, if all goes well as Manchester United’s interim boss. The German was addressing the English media for the very first time on Friday morning after taking over the reins from Michael Carrick following last night’s 3-2 Premier League win over Arsenal.
Carrick bid an emotional farewell to his former club after the full-time whistle, handing over the team to Rangnick, who will be taking charge of his first game on Sunday against Crystal Palace.
The 63-year-old has penned a contract until the end of the season before he will move upstairs in a consultancy role at Old Trafford.
But while Rangnick is under no illusions that the United hierarchy will be targeting the likes of Mauricio Pochettino, Erik ten Hag and Brendan Rodgers as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s permanent successor, he sees no reason to rule out staying in the job if the team are successful.
“I mean the people, with who I have spoken to so far have been very clear that we are talking about a six-and-a-half months role as a manager, currently,” he told the press.
“We have never spoken about what will happen in the summer right now, I’m fully aware that they might be looking for a new manager.
“If they will then speak with me about that, we will see.
“Maybe if they ask for my opinion and as you say, everything goes well and we develop the team, I might even make the same recommendation that I did to the board at RB Leipzig twice.
“I recommend that it might be a good idea to keep working with me for one year.
“This is all hypothetical, we cannot speak about that. For me, it’s about winning the next game.”
Solskjaer won over United chiefs within the space of three months as he was awarded a permanent contract in March 2019.
The Norwegian endured a rocky ride at the helm, guiding United to a second-place Premier League finish last season before losing the Europa League final to Villarreal in Gdansk.