Breaking news: Insider reveals the decision made by Manchester United board on Paul pogba and Maguire .

 

Oh, to be a fly on the wall when Ralf Rangnick

 caught up with his old friend Jurgen 

Klopp at Anfield late on Tuesday night

 following Liverpool's latest skewering

 of Manchester United.

Even by the dire standards set by United 

this season, Rangnick looked shell-shocked

 by what he had just witnessed. It's safe 

to assume a few home truths would have

 been shared with his German compatriot.

On the eve of the 4-0 defeat, he claimed 

the problems in United's squad could be 

put right in as few as two transfer windows

. Afterwards, Rangnick admitted that 

they are six years behind Liverpool.

He said his players would go to Anfield 

looking to win. In the end, they didn't 

even compete.

Six fouls, and just two in the first half, is 

unheard of for a United team against their

 fiercest rivals. Two yellow cards, two shots

 — one on target — and two corners. A 

paltry 28 per cent possession.

It took the late introduction of teenager Hannibal

 Mejbri to earn some praise from former

 United favourite Gary Neville for putting

 himself about in a way his teammates

 couldn't.

'I've never seen a Man United team 

wilt and be as flaky in a game of football 

in my 40 years,' sighed Neville.

The worrying aspect of United's capitulation

 wasn't that they were short of Liverpool 

in quality. We knew that from the 5-0 thrashing

 at Old Trafford in October and the 22-

point gap in the table.

It was the lack of fight from their players

 in what is meant to be the biggest rivalry

 in English football.

Right now, United are the polar opposite

 of a Liverpool team relentlessly 

pursuing a Quadruple.

But what should we expect? This is a 

mess entirely of United's making. They 

are competing for Champions League football

 next season with a temporary manager 

and half a squad who won't be there to 

reap the benefits.

At Anfield, Paul Pogba started alongside

 Nemanja Matic even though both players 

are heading for the exit this summer. When

 Pogba was injured, Jesse Lingard replaced

 him. Lingard is going too.

Nobody is questioning their professionalism,

 but is it any wonder they aren't putting 

their bodies on the line?

'Matic came out and said the other night 

that he is going to leave Manchester United

,' said former club skipper Roy Keane.

 'I just wonder where his mindset is because

 he is leaving the club.

'You look at the team. There was no 

heart, no soul, no leaders. There is disarray

 at this football club, from the top 

to the bottom.'

Pogba and Lingard will leave for nothing 

this summer. Edinson Cavani will go 

too, having been persuaded to sign a 

new one-year deal and then being blindsided

 by the return of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Anthony Martial, Dean Henderson, 

Donny van de Beek, Eric Bailly, Juan 

Mata  and Phil Jones could all claim 

to be victims of broken promises over

 first-team opportunities.

The players have taken their fair share 

of criticism and deservedly so. 'Disgrace 

— not fit to wear the shirt' read the banner

 displayed at the club's training base 

by protesters last week.

That's only one half of the equation, 

however. Is it any surprise the players 

can't match Liverpool's intensity when the

 situation at United has been allowed 

to deteriorate so badly for so long through

 poor decision-making?

Rangnick inherited a group desperately 

low on morale and was shocked by 

what he found.

After Tuesday's defeat, Rangnick estimated

 that up to 10 new signings will arrive this 

summer, which surprised agents who believe

 United's transfer budget could drop to 

£20million without guaranteed Champions

 League income.

United decided not to pursue Antonio 

Conte after they sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, 

and Mauricio Pochettino's camp feel that 

more effort could have been made to secure

 his services.

Rangnick's short-term appointment simply 

hasn't worked out, and a consultancy role 

that is said to involve working just six 

days a month raises questions over the

 long-term benefits as well.

The mess doesn't look like being cleared

 up any time soon. No wonder Erik ten 

Hag is taking his time.