Last week, Donny van de Beek's season took a dramatic turn for the worst. Ralf Rangnick shed light on Manchester United's next anticipated recruitment reboot after Van de Beek sustained an injury in the warm-up against West Ham, and Erik ten Hag, his former Ajax coach and current manager of Everton, is building momentum ahead of his prospective appointment by United.

So, what exactly do you need when you get back to DNA, speed, physicality and tempo? Rangnick posed the question strongly. "While this team does not lack technical players, greater physicality would benefit it.

To be honest, it has to be ingrained in a player's genetic makeup in some way. "We have a lot of people who are technical players, and it's difficult to transform them into physical, aggressive players," the coach said.

In the setback to Atletico Madrid and the fortunate draw with Leicester, Rangnick blamed United's lack of physicality on their inability to deal with the physicality of Leicester's Bruno Fernandes and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. It took them only two seconds to tackle us away twice.

Seven fouls have been committed by Van de Beek since he joined Everton in February, averaging more than one per game. Ismaila Sarr was forced to leave the field of play as a result of a crunching tackle from Manchester United's Juan Mata.

Van van Beek's best performance for United came in the second half, when he displayed silk and steel. At 2-1, Cristiano Ronaldo was denied by a goal and a defense-splitting pass. Van van Beek made a season-high four tackle attempts in his debut start under new head coach Jim Rangnick, eager to prove the doubters wrong about his weight.

After the Watford thumping, Van van Beek's fortunes appeared to be shifting when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer drove into Carrington to shoot his departure interview. In his one appearance under Michael Carrick, the Dutchman failed to impress and Rangnick had little hesitation in loaning him out.

It's unclear where Van de Beek stands between Ten Hag's familiarity with the player and Rangnick's emphasis on toughness. His performances for Ten Hag more than two years ago weren't enough to guarantee him a starting spot at Manchester United, where he has performed worse than fellow Dutchman Memphis Depay.

It's possible that Darren Fletcher, a dubious technical director, may provide an unbiased viewpoint because he's seen Van de Beek in action while he was training. Some of Van de Beek's colleagues believed that his training performances justified more playing time, but his mentality was a weakness, as evidenced by his desire to fit into the comfort zone of Everton during the month of August in the Premier League. Everton's 17th-place finish at Goodison Park has made things a little tense.

Van van Beek's season at United was capped by Watford's victory.

Rangnick is exaggerating the technical prowess of Manchester United. Fernandes is the most momentous of the midfielders and strikers, capable of inventing something out of nothing in a creative manner, but unable of exerting control over the game. Paul Pogba has the ability, but he lacks the consistency in his performance. Fred is the most accurate portrayal of a technical player in a squad that is overstuffed.

As a result of his performance in the Old Firm derby, Amad has not made an appearance in the Scottish Premiership since. United's most physical full-back, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, has been regarded as "off the pace" in the calm of La Liga on Sunday night, Victor Lindelof is vulnerable to battering rams, and Anthony Martial has been described as "off the pace."

Rangnick has begun to look beyond this season, as the Red Devils are on the verge of forfeiting their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League. He emphasized how well Arsenal had recruited ahead of a season that would be bereft of European competition, and he advised United to look for players who are motivated for a more advanced career path.

That approach is comparable to United's recruitment overhaul in 2019, in which the club prioritized players who were enthralled by the idea of playing for the club over those who were simply interested. In order to avoid attracting attention from major stars, United initially considered signing Paulo Dybala to replace Romelu Lukaku, but they immediately backed away. The next year, Edinson Cavani scored on the final day of the season, and Cristiano Ronaldo did so last year.
The plan of Solskjaer was admirable, but ultimately ineffective, and the concentration on British players was misplaced and idealistic, as was the outcome. The approach that will be taken under Rangnick's direction will very certainly be more continental.

Having the opportunity to play in either the Europa League or the Conference League will weaken United's position in the market. They must take advantage of this situation - no pursuing lost causes, being led down the garden path, or creating a retirement home for another armchair striker are acceptable options for them.

In particular, the club is looking for a midfielder and forward, with a full-back and a centre-back also on the table, with Eric Bailly and Phil Jones both willing to leave. It would be preferable to have a centre half with the profile Bailly had when he joined in 2016, sans the brittleness.

Declan Rice, who is of interest to Manchester United and who is interested in United, has the potential to develop into a dominant box-to-box midfielder, similar to Yaya Toure, who did so when he joined Manchester City from Liverpool in 2011. Christopher Nkunku, a midfielder who can also play as a second striker for RB Leipzig, would provide further depth to the midfield.
Fernandes, let alone Van de Beek, would be in danger if Nkunku were to appear.