Ralf Rangnick confirms Manchester United have scrapped 4-2-2-2 formation

Manchester United interim boss Ralf Rangnick has scrapped his favoured 4-2-2-2 formation after the players failed to adapt to his demands of adopting a high press.

The German was clear on his desire to play with two forwards and two inverted wingers when he first moved to Old Trafford, as he felt it was the best way of cramming United’s attacking talent into the starting XI.

However, barring brief periods in his first match in charge against Crystal Palace and a 3-1 win against Burnley, United have largely underwhelmed under Rangnick and in the system itself.

And, when asked about Jesse Lingard’s future role, Rangnick confirmed that he’s now transitioned to a 4-3-3 formation that will accomodate a single defensive midfielder and two box-to-box midfielders.

‘For me, it’s important always that we win the next game we are playing,’ said Rangnick. ‘It’s also a question of formation, which is the best possible position for players.

‘We have now decided to play a 4-3-3 like we did against Aston Villa, with one holding six, two eights and three offensive players.

‘There are two positions that he can play but we also have some competition in those positions. Obviously, he needs to play and train on the kind of level that he is an option to start.

‘We have a big squad, maybe a little bit too big of a squad. As far as I know, his contract is expiring in the summer and the question is what will happen after that four months. Again, he is a player who can play, I brought him on in the last 10 minutes of the Villa game along with Donny van de Beek.

‘He will probably not be available for tomorrow because he didn’t train yesterday and the day before yesterday, he will probably also not train today, because he has an issue with his ankle. This