Erik ten Hag snubbed Ralf Rangnick request as Man Utd got him to ‘sign a non-disclosure’ | Football | Sport

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag reportedly snubbed Ralf Rangnick’s request for a face-to-face meeting before the Austrian walked away from Old Trafford last month. And Rangnick was asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement as his spell in Manchester came to a surprise end.

United appointed Rangnick as their interim manager at the end of November after they had sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer following an embarrassing 4-1 thumping at the hands of Watford. Rangnick oversaw a promising run of results during the early days of his United tenure as the team won three of his first four Premier League matches at the helm.

But the wheels came off in the New Year as the Red Devils struggled for form. United suffered the ignominy of exiting the FA Cup in the fourth round following a penalty shootout defeat to Championship side Middlesbrough. The 13-time Premier League champions then lost to Atletico Madrid in the last 16 of the Champions League.

And following an egregious Premier League display against Brighton in May, where United shipped four goals without reply, the team finished sixth in the top flight. Rangnick, who had originally been set to stay at Old Trafford in a consultancy role for the next two years, promptly left the club following the conclusion of the campaign.

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“By mutual agreement, Ralf will now focus solely on his new role as manager of the Austria national team and will not therefore be taking up a consultancy role at Old Trafford. We would like to wish Ralf the best of luck in this next chapter of his career.”

Ten Hag now has the unenviable task of restoring United to their former glory after years of underachievement. The Red Devils last won the Premier League title in 2013 under legendary Scottish manager Sir Alex Ferguson. But they have since suffered a precipitous fall from grace and finished with their lowest ever Premier League points tally last season.

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