The 63-year-old is set to fail in his goal of leading the stalled team to the Champions League qualifiers, but still hopes to leave a lasting legacy at Old Trafford.
Rangnik will change from United’s interim boss to a consultant this summer – a job that will go hand in hand with his new position as head coach of the Austrian national team.
The German has an impressive track record of developing teams, having recently succeeded with RB Leipzig and his sister team RB Salzburg, and believes transfers are the key to offering incoming boss Erik ten Hag this platform to succeed.
“For me, the most important part is hiring now,” Rangnick said when asked what he would advise.
“This is, for me, the most important point, that we bring in the best possible players and talk about who he could be.
“It is not just to recognize these players, but to get to know them, to convince them to join this club, even though we will not be playing in the Champions League.
“This is what I see as the most important part. Again, also in terms of the top talented players for the academy, recognizing such players.”
It would be one of those examples where I think the focus should be on trying to locate and find and then convince players who could be Manchester United players for the next two years. Rangnik in Erling Haland
Asked if United could return to the player market at the height of its strength, Rangnik said: “My personal view is that the club should try to find future top players and develop them.
“Again, on the other hand, tell me five players who may be some of the players you talked about.”
When Haaland and Kylan Mbappe retired, Rangnick said: “Haaland is a young player. He is 21 or 22. This is one of those players I talked about.
“But on the other hand, in the last two years he has become one of the most expensive strikers in the world.
“But, yes, it could be, it would be one of those examples where I think the focus should be on trying to locate and find and then convince players who could be Manchester United players for the next two years”.
Rangnik reveals new criteria for Manchester United signatures
Rangnik believes that United’s support, stadium and training facilities continue to make it an attractive proposition, regardless of qualifying for the Champions League. But this view also comes with a dose of realism, as rivals Manchester City and Liverpool fly high, with the club aiming for the “full package” of “mentality, quality, physicality, rhythm, skills” in new players. Rangnick says it is clear the team needs additions due to their games and departing players, with Monday’s game against Brentford seeming to be a farewell to Old Trafford for out-of-contract Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata and . “I would like to (play them), but it is also to have the best possible result and the best possible performance,” he said. “It’s not like giving gifts to players. “Juan Mata played the last 15 minutes, Nema almost the whole game, so it’s not to say goodbye to the fans. “If this is possible, I would do it or I would like to do it, but it also has to do with the best possible result.” Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player FREE ATTENTION: Snapshots from the draw between Manchester United and Chelsea. Rangnik hopes to have Fred back for Monday’s game and captain Harry Maguire can return, while Edinson Cavani – another who expired this summer – was due to return to training on Friday. But the 63-year-old says that Jadon Sancho will be absent from Brentford and “may be left out for the rest of the season due to his tonsillitis”. Asked if Sancho was pulling out his tonsils, Rangnik added: “It could happen. “He definitely has an inflammation in his tonsils and he also had some high temperatures, so he was not available (against Chelsea) and he will definitely not be available for the next two games. “Hopefully they can get this inflammation and then hope that if the tonsils need to be removed and removed, that can happen at the end of the season.”
