I said this at the start of the month:
I would be delighted with Rangnick, assuming he's prepared to be Sporting Director afterwards, that would just be ideal. He could then help appoint a new manager in the summer. Far too good of a plan to ever come true though, I fear...
So we're sort of two-thirds of the way there... a miracle!
I'm not sure it's as simple as the Glazers trusting and allowing him to call the shots. That's obviously important because one thing the Glazers have shown post Fergie is that they'll make short term, reactionary decisions but you also have to question whether what Rangnick achieved and stands for is transferable to a club like Utd. Rangnick's never been at a side that's really challenged at the top table, what he's done is built sides to a level a rung or two below the elite without ever actually making the final steps. At Utd he'd obviously have more spending power but similar to how Bielsa tries to manage, it's easier to get the buy-in from younger players without the superstar egos than established elite players.
It's certainly not impossible as there are lots of similarities to how Liverpool do things but you need everybody at the club to buy into the idea. You only had to look at how things went wrong under Rodgers when we had a manager not fully aligned with those above him. Would Utd allow Rangnick to appoint his successor or will they appoint Poch (or whoever they think is best) that doesn't want to work under Rangnick's set-up? If they do appoint a Rangnick man, what do they then do about all the very high profile and very expensive players that don't suit his philosophy?
It'll be about striking a balance. Here the expectation is greater and the financial sums will be larger, but his philosophy is very clear - although it is geared towards high-energy younger players, but we have plenty of those in fairness. He's supposedly a bit more mellow these days and trusting of others, so is perhaps less likely to have a bust up with the board, although if the board have learned anything at all, they'll defer to his judgement.
The dream scenario is that he stays on, and we bring in Ten Hag, but equally, despite being everyones choice, he's a bit of an unknown quantity at this level too. Ajax are a huge club, but play in a relatively poor league where they are the top dog. Ten Hag would never be able to work within the current system where Woodward and the Glazers mess things up, but if we changed the footballing structure, the potential is there.
Just as an aside, Sancho is a prime example of someone I hope will flourish in a new system with someone like Rangnick as manager. Van De Beek will be well suited too.
Interesting times, for a change.