Rooney's bleak message to Rangnick ahead of imminent Man Utd appointment

Wayne Rooney has warned Ralf Rangnick to expect a "tough job" as he prepares to take charge at Manchester United.

But the Old Trafford legend is confident his former club have made the right decision by pursuing the highly-regarded German.

Rangnick is on the brink of being appointed United interim manager on a six-month contract until the end of the season.

He is leaving his technical role at Lokomotiv Moscow to return to the dugout, having last managed RB Leipzig for two stints between 2015 and 2019.

Rangnick is considered one of the great pioneers of gegenpressing and he burst onto the scene in his homeland with eye-catching spells at Hoffenheim and Schalke, prior to his time with the Red Bull stable of clubs.

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But the Premier League is a different beast and Rooney anticipates the 63-year-old will have his work cut out in one of the most-scrutinised jobs in football.

"I think he's obviously very highly respected in the game, and I think he's got a tough job to come in [to]," the Derby County boss said of Rangnick.

"I don't mean in terms of his ability, in terms of to come in for six months and stamp his way of playing and his pressing if you like, and how he likes to work."

Rangnick's high-tempo, intense-pressing style of play marks a stark contrast to the tactics employed by previous manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

United's players are used to sitting back and looking to hit on the counter-attack, so Rangnick will need to imprint his methods on the squad quickly, as Rooney pointed out.

The former Leipzig supremo is expected to get to work at the club's Carrington training ground in the coming days, once he obtains a visa and is formally unveiled.

This means his first game in charge could be a Premier League encounter against Arsenal on Thursday night.

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Although he believes Rangnick has a mountain to climb, Rooney is pleased with United's choice to succeed Solskjaer in the short term - and he even believes the Red Devils could win silverware this season.

The England legend added: "He's (Rangnick's) very experienced, I'm sure he'll adapt to the players he's got and bring some stability back to the team, but also with the view of looking to trying to win trophies.

"That Manchester United team are more than capable of winning trophies this season and I think they've made the right appointment to give themselves the best chance."