Ralf Rangnick has explained why he took off Paul Pogba early in the second half during Manchester United’s win against Leeds United in the Premier League.

The French midfielder was replaced by Fred in the 67th minute of the game. Rangnick was asked about his substitutions during the game. He explained:

“It is easy to say that afterwards. But I think we needed that intensity. Paul, I wouldn’t say he was tired, but he was a little bit tiring out which is normal after his long injury break. And with Fred and Anthony Elanga, we had two energetic players on the bench and we decided to take those subs pretty early.”

Both Fred and Anthony Elanga got on the scoresheet for Manchester United as they beat Leeds United 4-2.

Speaking on the win, Rangnick was full of praise for the travelling away support. He said:

“[The win] was great for everybody in the club, for supporters, for the players, for us, we knew that we had to win, even more so after yesterday’s results. Let’s keep it going. I hope this experience today will also give us additional energy for the Champions League and upcoming games in the Premier League.”

The win means Manchester United are now four points behind Chelsea in 3rd place. The Red Devils will take on Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie in midweek, before welcoming Watford in the Premier League next weekend.

“I’m proud with that the boys did today” – Rangnick on Manchester United’s performance against Leeds United

Rangnick also spoke about the about the atmosphere at Leeds United and his side’s performance during the game. He said:

“[It was] my first as a manager but I was here back in 1993 with VfB Stuttgart. That was the former European Cup, the now Champions League, Stuttgart against Leeds, and the atmosphere I can remember was similar to today. It was a great game to watch, not for the two managers, but for us highly important, and after conceding those two goals, we showed fantastic reaction, we showed maturity and unity on the pitch and that’s why I’m proud with that the boys did today.”

“You could see how quickly things could change, we had a similar experience at Aston Villa and today it’s not easy for the players, and also for us as the staff members, to say ‘not again, please’. The reaction we showed after the second goal, it took us five minutes to shake ourselves but after those five minutes, we come back into the game, we controlled the game in the last 20 minutes, could and should have scored another two goals. I think the first chance Anthony Elanga had was almost bigger than the one he took at the end.”