Manchester United have made the appointment to fix problem Ralf Rangnick spotted

Manchester United are now just a week away from their pre-season opener against Rosenborg and time is running out if they plan to parade a new signing at the Lerkendal Stadion.

Last year, Mason Mount was the headline act of their pre-season opener in Norway, starting a 2-0 win over Leeds United. He was deployed in midfield alongside Kobbie Mainoo and Hannibal Mejbri.

Mount joined United exactly a week before debuting in Oslo, meaning he did not get much time to familiarise himself with his new colleagues. Any potential incomings before the clash with Rosenborg will face even less time.

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United are growing in confidence they will sign Bayern Munich centre-back Matthijs de Ligt after opening discussions. He previously worked with Erik ten Hag at Ajax and is considered as a direct replacement for the recently departed Raphael Varane.

If United are successful in their efforts, De Ligt would become United's third centre-back signing of the Ten Hag era, and the second to arrive with Ajax connections. Lisandro Martinez was directly extracted from the Dutch giants in 2022.

With Ten Hag's future at Old Trafford now secured, United can continue planning for the forthcoming campaign with a sense of security. Sir Jim Ratcliffe has assembled his top team, recently adding Christopher Vivell and Dan Ashworth to the appointments of Omar Berrada and Jason Wilcox, and United now have all of the foundations in place to press ahead with their planning for this transfer window and beyond.

One of the biggest challenges facing Ratcliffe and his top team is