Rangnick explains Armas' Man Utd role amid growing squad uncertainty

Ralf Rangnick is adamant Chris Armas has earned the respect of the Manchester United dressing room, with his impact already being felt at Carrington.

Armas was named as Rangnick's assistant shortly after the latter's appointment as interim boss.

Despite never working with each other directly, the German had become aware of Armas' credentials following stints with New York Red Bulls.

He was named as the successor to Michael Carrick, who opted to leave Old Trafford following a short run as caretaker boss after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer 's dismissal.

Armas, 49, is helping to head up a new-look coaching team at United, after Kieran McKenna also departed the club, having been given the chance to begin his managerial career with Ipswich Town.

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The American's appointment did raise some eyebrows, with his last job going down as an unmitigated failure with Toronto FC in MLS.

Manchester Evening News claim there was a sense of confusion Stateside after one source thought a 'joke was being played on them'.

There have also been whispers of discontent from within the Man United squad, amid reports that players have been left unconvinced by the new setup.

Rangnick himself has struggled to have the kind of impact he would have hoped and is already willing to scrap his favoured formation.

According to the Athletic, Armas' early sessions left a lot to be desired with players feeling they were left without direction on what to do in possession.

However, Rangnick claims his right-hand man has made an immediate impression in his new role and already has the players on side.

"Very helpful," Rangnick told the club's media team when asked about Armas' impact. "We haven't worked together before that, the same is true with Ewan Sharp but with Chris Armas, we knew each other from our mutual time with Red Bull when he was head coach and assistant coach with New York Red Bulls.

"He's very helpful, not only very loyal but also very helpful and it's very helpful he's a native speaker. He knows how to communicate with players and he also has a high level of respect now from the players, they know that he's a good guy and also a good expert in different areas. I'm very happy to have him on board."

United take on Brentford on Wednesday night, looking for just their third Premier League win under Rangnick and the 63-year-old has confirmed he is willing to ditch the 4-2-2-2 shape he initially wanted to implement.

"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," he explained.

Jadon Sancho is one player that looks set to benefit from a change in shape after Rangnick revealed his suitability to play in a variety of the roles required.

He added: "It's clear in a 4-3-3 that he (Sancho) is a player for either of the wing positions, either left or right, he can play both.

"I think he would prefer a little bit the left side, because then he can switch inside and shoot on goal with his strong right foot."