Ralf Rangnick has reportedly lost the Manchester United dressing room after making a string of decisions which did not go down well with his underperforming players.
After it emerged that substitute Jesse Lingard had labelled the Old Trafford dressing room a "disaster" following their frustrating 3-1 defeat away to Arsenal, interim manager Rangnick is continuing to make himself unpopular with the Red Devils' players. Mirror Football understands that the acclaimed German coach has privately branded his squad "selfish" and now the Times say that the dressing room has been described by sources as 'toxic', and 'devoid of belief and confidence' as the close on the campaign nears.
That downbeat mood is the result of a host of factors, including the claim that a selection of players have not been convinced by Rangnick and his staff since their arrival in December following the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, whose decisions were also said to be criticised by the squad.
It is added that one senior player had already made up his mind regarding Rangnick and co's credentials by January, as United narrowly kept themselves in the race for Champions League football. But in recent weeks, a sourness has returned within the camp, with problems on and off the pitch coming to the fore during last Tuesday's 4-0 hammering at the hands of arch rivals Liverpool.
For the grudge match, Rangnick surprisingly opted to employ a three-man defence, a decision which led to raised eyebrows from his players, who had limited time to learn the new-look formation which was tellingly abandoned at half-time.
The 63-year-old, who is set to step into a consultancy role at Old Trafford when new boss Erik ten Hag takes over in the summer, has also become more candid of late when discussing the state of the club. Rangnick's comments, such as admitting that the Red Devils require "open hart surgery" and an overhaul which could see "10 players" depart, have not only been looked down upon in the dressing room but the boardroom, too.
Join the debate! Will Rangnick be at Man Utd beyond the end of this season? Give us your prediction here.
It is not just Rangnick voicing his concerns in public, as after the loss at Arsenal on Saturday - which all but ended United's hopes of finishing in the top four of the Premier League this term - midfielder Scott McTominay pulled no punches in his assessment and hinted at a multitude of behind-the-scenes issues.
"It is pride on the pitch – give your best, everyone," McTominay told BT Sport. "There are a lot of things going on at the minute. When we get back in the dressing room – it's go home and take a look at yourself in the mirror.
"You can't go back to your house and be satisfied with conceding three goals away at Arsenal when we deserved to win the game. For us, self-belief, lack of confidence – you can see it all in the last two months. We had a half-decent game but even then it is the belief, which is so big in football. It is just not there. It is a bit of balls in your performances.
"That is what it comes down to – the fundamentals of football. It is difficult for me to speak right now because there are so many emotions. It comes down to the basics and we never do them well enough in big games, recently."
