“We had quite a few conversations in the last couple of weeks – he is probably the player with whom I have spoken most,” Rangnick said in United’s press conference ahead of their match against Wolves.
Cavani is a significant player for Rangnick
Edinson Cavani has found opportunities hard to come by since joining Manchester United in 2020, which has led to rumours that he wants to leave the club this January. However, interim Manchester United head coach Ralf Rangnick has made it clear that he wants the Uruguayan to stay at Old Trafford. “We had quite a few conversations in the last couple of weeks – he is probably the player with whom I have spoken most,” Rangnick said in United’s press conference ahead of their match against Wolves. “I told him from the very first day that, for me, he is a significant player. He is probably the only one who can play as a striker back to goal and face to goal.”
Edinson’s work ethic is just amazing
Rangnick also stressed Cavani’s qualities as a person as another key reason as to why he wants him to stay at the club beyond January. “His professionalism, his work ethic is just amazing, and I told him that I desperately want him to stay until the end of the season. He knows that,” Rangnick stated. One of the reasons why Cavani has had less game time this season is due to the return of Cristiano Ronaldo to Manchester United last summer. Since taking over from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on November 29, Rangnick has tried to play Cavani alongside Ronaldo in matches. “He also knows how highly I rate him and how highly I respect him, and that was also the reason why I played him from the beginning together with Cristiano,” Rangnick said on the matter.
The head coach still believes that the club should keep Van de Beek
Even if Cavani remains past January, there are a number of his teammates who look on their way out of the club this month. Firstly, Anthony Martial looks closer than ever to leaving the club, with Sevilla interested in signing him. Donny van de Beek also looks close to a move away from Old Trafford once again, and he could be on his way too, should the right club come in for him. “Of course, it’s difficult for him right now because he also wants to play for the Dutch national team,” Rangnick responded when asked about the future of Van de Beek. “He wants to qualify for himself and play in the World Cup in Qatar, and to do that, he needs to get game time here.”
“But I still believe that we should keep him, that he should stay here, definitely until the end of this season and try to get as much game time as he possibly can.”