Man Utd suffer first major blow in manager hunt as pressure mounts on Ralf Rangnick

Manchester United have been forced to accept that coaching prodigy Julian Nagelsmann will not be their next manager.

The Bayern Munich boss would reportedly succeed Ralf Rangnick "in an ideal world" but the Red Devils admit that enticing Nagelsmann out of Germany at this stage would be a tough ask. The 34-year-old took charge in Bavaria last summer and Sky Sports claim that he would be unwilling to leave until a more "stable" opportunity in the Premier League arises.

Naglesmann has made his name as one of the Bundesliga 's best tacticians in recent years since being handed the manager's job at Hoffenheim aged only 29. A self-confessed United supporter as a child, it was hoped that the German could succeed Rangnick - who is set to stay at Old Trafford in a consultancy role for the next two years from the end of the season - just as his did following the 63-year-old's interim spell as RB Leipzig boss in 2019.

But to rub salt in the Red Devils' wounds, Nagelsmann is believed to view replacing Pep Guardiola at Manchester City or Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool as better options to progress his career, although the Bayern manager was inspired by Rangnick's coaching philosophy and wished him luck after his appointment in December.

"I texted him and told him I think it's great," Nagelsmann revealed at a press conference. "He will do United very well with the way he plays football. I believe that United will play good games in the next few weeks and I wish he’ll stay there longer than just next summer."

The young boss' predicament leaves United assessing a four-man shortlist, with Mauricio Pochettino and Erik ten Hag remaining the frontrunners ahead of Luis Enrique and Julian Lopetegui. In recent weeks, it has emerged that