Ralf Rangnick's Controversial Stance On Players Having Tattoos Could Affect Many Manchester United Players

Ralf Rangnick's controversial take on players having tattoos has emerged, with the 63-year-old not exactly a fan.

Rangnick, who is poised to take charge of Manchester United on an interim basis until the end of the season, has been described as "the Godfather of gegenpressing".

But he is also quite the disciplinarian. And Rangnick believes those who have plenty of ink on their body are not "team players".

Image: PA

“If I say it’s a coincidence, this is not quite the truth. For the style of football we play, we need team players,” Rangnick said as per the Daily Mail 

“They should at least celebrate with the guy who gave the assist. Of course this has not necessarily to do with tattoos. But then we need to discuss why do people have tattoos all over their body? It’s got to do with being exceptional and trying to attract attention.

“I’m not asking a player before we meet, show me your body whether you have any tattoos. Maybe some of them have tattoos. At least they don’t have them where you can see it everywhere.”

Like most teams, United do have a number of players with tattoos - including the likes of Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes, Jadon Sancho, Jesse Lingard, Victor Lindelof, Phil Jones and Alex Telles.

Image: PA

But tattoos will surely be at the bottom of his priorities once he takes the reins at Old Trafford until the end of the campaign.

United are currently tenth in the Premier League after a dire run of form that ultimately resulted in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer being relieved of his duties.

One of the biggest issues for United has been their lack of pressing and that, is of course, an area Rangnick specialises in.

He has influenced the likes of Thomas Tuchel and Jurgen Klopp and has a training drill called "countdown clock" which demands his players to win the ball back in EIGHT seconds and score within TEN of regaining possession.

At RB Leipzig, Rangnick also introduced a "spinning wheel" to decide on punishments for players who broke club rules.

He will take up a consultancy role once his interim stint is over and will have a say in the club's next permanent manager.

His first game in charge is set to come against Arsenal on Thursday, with Michael Carrick at the helm for the trip to Chelsea this weekend.

Topics: Manchester United, Ralf Rangnick, RB Leipzig, Hoffenheim

Josh Lawless

Josh is a sports journalist who specialises in football and wrestling. He has been published by Curzon Ashton FC, Late Tackle, Manchester City FC, The Mirror, Read Man City and Manchester Evening News. He provides coverage of professional wrestling and has interviewed some of the biggest names in the field - including the first UK interview with The Hardy Boyz after their return to WWE. He has never sported a pair of Lonsdale Slip-ons, contrary to reports.

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