London (AFP) – Manchester United announced on Monday they had appointed Ralf Rangnick as interim manager until the end of the season following the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after a disastrous run of results.

The 63-year-old will arrive at Old Trafford from Russian side Lokomotiv Moscow, where he was manager of sports and development, becoming just the sixth German manager to coach in the Premier League.

At the end of the season Rangnick, whose appointment is subject to work visa requirements, will take on a consultancy role at the 20-times English champions for a further two years.

He will take over from first-team coach Michael Carrick, who has been in caretaker charge for two games since Solskjaer was dismissed just over a week ago following a humiliating 4-1 defeat at lowly Watford.

“He was our number one candidate for interim manager, reflecting the invaluable leadership and technical skills he will bring from almost four decades of experience in management and coaching,” said United football director John Murtough.

The former RB Leipzig boss said he was excited to be joining United and focused on turning around the fortunes of the club, who are floundering in eighth spot in the Premier League, five points off the top four.

“The squad is full of talent and has a great balance of youth and experience,” he said. “All my efforts for the next six months will be on helping these players fulfil their potential, both individually and, most importantly, as a team.

“Beyond that, I look forward to supporting the club’s longer-term goals on a consultancy basis.”

Rangnick could take charge for the first time against Arsenal on Thursday if his work permit issues are sorted out quickly.

Carrick — who has overseen a Champions League win over Villarreal and a 1-1 draw on Sunday at Stamford Bridge, where he dropped Cristiano Ronaldo — will remain in caretaker charge until Rangnick’s work visa is finalised.

Former United captain Gary Neville tweeted: “Welcome to the Greatest Football Club in the World Ralf Rangnick.”

– Solskjaer sacking –

Club bosses ran out of patience with Solskjaer despite keeping faith with the Norwegian after humiliating home defeats to rivals Liverpool and Manchester City.

The former striker, who scored the winning goal for United in the 1999 Champions League final to complete a historic treble, was in charge at Old Trafford for nearly three years.

Under his leadership United finished in the Premier League top four in back-to-back seasons for the first time since Alex Ferguson retired as boss in 2013 but they have not won silverware since 2017.

The American-owned club can boast abundant riches in attack, with Ronaldo, Edinson Cavani, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Marcus Greenwood and Anthony Martial all vying for starting spots.

But their leaky defence has already conceded 22 goals in 13 games, more than four times Chelsea’s total of five and they are well off the pace set this season by Chelsea, Liverpool and City.

Rangnick has managed a number of clubs in Germany including Stuttgart, Schalke, Hoffenheim and RB Leipzig and has also operated as director of football at RB Leipzig and RB Salzburg.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp and Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel have both spoken highly of their compatriot, who won the German Cup with Schalke in 2011.

During the same season, he led Schalke to the semi-finals of the Champions League, where they lost 6-1 on aggregate to United, who were then beaten by Barcelona in the final.

Rangnick is renowned for his emphasis on “gegenpressing”, a high-pressing style of football in which hard work and zonal pressing means the ball is won high in the opposition’s half in attacking areas.

Klopp said last week, before the appointment was confirmed, that the veteran manager’s appointment was “not good news for other teams” due to his impressive track record.