Ralf Rangnick and Manchester United's relationship is over as last season's interim manager will not be staying on as a consultant, it was announced on Sunday. After being appointed as the Austrian national team manager, it was expected that Rangnick would balance both jobs because the consultancy role is a fluid one, but he now moves on as the Erik ten Hag era begins.
"I'm really looking forward to playing my part in helping United become a real force again," Rangnick said in April about being a consultant.
Less than a month later, things have shifted due to the demands that he'll face leading the national team. The club released a statement announcing the move on Sunday.
"We would like to thank Ralf Rangnick for his efforts as interim manager over the past six months," the statement read. "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."
It's hard to say what Rangnick's legacy will be at Manchester United since six months isn't much time for a manager to make a change at a club, but the way things are ending is less than ideal. Rangnick led Manchester United to a Europa League place, but the Red Devils were only two points off of one when he was appointed in November. After crashing out of the Champions League round of 16, it's fair to say that this ended up being a disaster. This past season, in fact, was United's worst ever Premier League campaign, finishing with just 58 points and a 16-10-12 record. United also conceded 57 goals in 38 games.
Ten Hag has a tough job ahead to restore Manchester United to their former glory but it could be a good thing that past influences won't be involved moving forward. He can see the areas that need to be improved and potentially move forward uninterrupted and with more of a say in the decisions being made.
Rangnick's United tenure ended with just 11 wins in 29 matches.