Rangnick lauds De Gea and admits there’s a lot to work on.

Ralf Rangnick issued a rallying cry after Man Utd beat Norwich at Carrow Road, asking the Red Devils to raise their intensity going forward.

The Red Devils had David de Gea to thank for his fine display between the sticks (Sky Sports Screen Shot)

Ralf Rangnick took the positives from Manchester United’s narrow win over Norwich and heaped praise on David De Gea following the match on Saturday evening. Cristiano Ronaldo's penalty earned Manchester United a narrow victory over The Canaries to maintain Rangnick's unbeaten start as interim manager. The Portuguese goal machine Ronaldo sent goalkeeper Tim Krul the wrong way in the 75th minute after he had been pulled down by Max Aarons in the 18-yard box. United weren’t at their best and offered little in attack before then, though left-back Alex Telles hit the bar with a deflected free-kick in the first half. The Red Devils also had David de Gea to thank for his fine display between the sticks as he denied Teemu Pukki and Ozan Kabak. Norwich were brilliant but just couldn’t convert their chances on the day. The victory means United move above Arsenal and Tottenham into fifth place, while Norwich stay bottom on goal difference, three points from safety.

'De Gea won us the game'

Following the game, United interim manager Ralf Rangnick told Sky Sports: "It was an away game, a very physical intense game. "I've told Dean [Smith] that Norwich didn't play like a bottom team. They played like we played against Crystal Palace. "In the second half we had a better body language upfront but we still allowed them to have chances. "In the end, it is David de Gea who won us the game. "You have to be physically present, that was not always the case in all positions. We need to always be physically present. "Some of our players are technical players. There was not so much space to be technical. You need to be more physical, this is not something we did in all positions. We need to raise our level of intensity.

Rangnick is the second Man United manager to register a clean sheet in his first two league games (Sky Sports Screen Shot)

"It's not only a question of individual players, it's how we play as a team. It's about winning first balls, second balls. "Still, at least we got the three points, another clean sheet. But we need to improve also. "Victor Lindelof had a collision, he can't even remember what it was. He was struggling to breathe. They have done all the tests and he seems OK." History continues… Following the win at Carrow Road, Rangnick became the second Manchester United manager to register a clean sheet in his first two league games in charge after Ernest Mangnall back in 1903. And, Ronaldo is the third player to score under three different United managers in a single campaign after James Hanson and Joe Spence both did so in 1926-27.

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