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Former goalkeeper Paul Robinson has hailed Manchester United's 'character' and 'strength' following their win over Leeds United in the Premier League at the weekend.
The fourth-placed Red Devils beat Leeds 4-2 on Sunday, taking them to within four points behind Chelsea in third on the table.
Rangnick's side went 2-0 up in the first half but were pegged back to 2-2 early in the second-half after two quickfire goals by Leeds. However, Manchester United showed enough resilience to come away with the victory.
Speaking on the game, Robinson was asked whether the win would reduce some of the criticism that has been around Manchester United recently. The former Tottenham player lauded the Red Devils for their performance, but still pointed out some of the weaknesses that need to be addressed. He said:
"This will not go away. They showed a lot of character and they showed a lot of strength. They didn’t look like a team that are disjointed. However, they looked to me like a team with defensive problems. There were far too many chances conceded."
“They conceded two at Elland Road and their goalkeeper has made the most saves in the Premier League so far. It’s not what you’d expect from a Manchester United side. But they didn’t look like a disjointed team or a team that look like they have internal problems. The manager’s quashed that with the discussion of the captaincy."
Manchester United will take on Spanish champions Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League Round of 16 tie on Wednesday. Rangnick will hope his side can show the same resilience when they come up against Diego Simeone's side. The Red Devils will then host Watford in the Premier League on the weekend, in what is a must-win game for their top 4 ambitions.
"Ronaldo’s a leader" - Robinson on Manchester United's captaincy
Robinson also spoke about how he thinks the captain's armband should not matter and that players like Cristiano Ronaldo are natural leaders in Ralf Rangnick's squad. He said:
"Ronaldo’s a leader, whether he’s got the captain’s armband or not. You want players like that in the dressing room, you want 11 leaders. Who wears the armband is at times irrelevant because everyone’s got to lead by example. That will die down, that’s been put to bed between now and the end of the season."
