Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday ended Ralf Rangnick’s unbeaten start as Manchester United interim manager as Joao Moutinho’s strike earned a deserved 1-0 win at Old Trafford.
A first home defeat to Wolves in 42 years leaves United still seventh in the Premier League table, four points adrift of the top four.
However, it was another lackluster performance that was just as concerning for Rangnick as it was for the Red Devils, who were thoroughly outplayed.
Photo: AFP
“We didn’t play well at all, neither individually or collectively,” said Rangnick, who had taken 10 points from his first four games in charge. “We didn’t press at all. We tried, but after 10 or 15 minutes, we were not able to get into those pressing situations.”
“The games show we still have a lot of work to do. Especially against the ball, but also in the first half when we had the ball, we had too many unforced giveaways,” Rangnick said.
An injury crisis at center-back — with captain Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly all missing — forced Rangnick to hand Phil Jones his first Premier League appearance in two years.
However, the former England international was one of few United players to emerge with any credit from a ragged display that raises questions over their chances of qualifying for next season’s UEFA Champions League.
Cristiano Ronaldo was named United captain for just the second time in the absence of Maguire.
In a New Year post on social media, Ronaldo said he was “not happy” with the state of affairs at United and that “we have to work harder, play better and deliver way more than we are delivering right now.”
However, there was no sign of improvement as Ronaldo was kept quiet up against a number of his Portuguese international teammates.
David De Gea was the difference between the sides when United won 1-0 at Molineux in August and the Spaniard was again his side’s savior with a fingertip save to turn Ruben Neves’ volley over early on.
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