Ten Hag has rejuvenated one Man Utd star, claims Rangnick

Tom Weber

• 27 Mar 2023 06:57 CDT
• 3 min read

Former Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick has suggested that Erik ten Hag has rejuvenated Manchester United star Marcel Sabitzer.

Sabitzer arrived in January on loan from Bayern after falling out of favour in Munich. The Austrian initially followed his former RB Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann, who has now been sacked, to the Bavarians but struggled for consistent performances and a regular place in the side.

He was consequently snapped up by Manchester United to add depth and quality to Erik ten Hag's midfield options. The 29-year-old has since featured prominently for the Red Devils in the Premier League as well as playing 20 minutes in the League Cup final win over Newcastle United.

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After captaining Austria to a 4-1 win to kickstart their EURO 2024 Qualifying Campaign, Sabitzer was singled out for praise by Ralf Rangnick.

What did Rangnick say?

Rangnick knows Sabitzer well going back to his time at RB Leipzig, having brought the Austrian to the club in 2014.

Though the 64-year-old's interim stint at Old Trafford was marred by inconsistency and drama, the German clearly still keeps an eye on the Red Devils in his capacity as Austrian national team coach.

After his sides' victory over Azerbaijan, Rangnick, speaking to Laola1, said of Sabitzer: "He has a lot more confidence than when he was at Bayern. Nobody stood out in this game, but of course, you can say that ‘Sabi’ was the difference player after scoring two goals and preparing one."

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It's an interesting acknowledgement considering that Rangnick was allegedly forced out of his consultancy role at Manchester United by none other than Erik ten Hag last year.

As for Sabitzer, whose Bayern contract runs until 2025, he spoke glowingly of his Manchester United coach before the Austria game, telling club media: "The manager does a lot of work. He is a hard worker, very structured and he’s helping us a lot with his gameplans, with training."