The 15 months saga which started with Sir Jim Ratcliffe‘s failed attempt to buy his boyhood club Manchester United ended officially when the Premier League announced that the British billionaire and his INEOS conglomerate purchased the minority shares of the club. The deal has cost him 1.65 billion US dollars, including 200 million dollars of initial investment in the club intended for the Old Trafford infrastructure and another 100 million by the end of the year. United, which is still listed on the New York Stock Exchange, told investors that Sir Jim’s liquid assets are worth four billion and his wealth exceeds that through his ownership of INEOS. With that kind of money and investment, Ratcliffe made sure that he took control of the sporting sector and is planning a big overhaul in that department, since he considers that the club‘s culture is not setup for success.There’s no time for making small steps! Ratcliffe wants to revolutionise Manchester UnitedAs soon as his buyout of 27.7% minority shares was approved by the club‘s shareholders, the British billionaire didn‘t sit and wait the official confirmation, which took weeks due to various procedures, he just started working immediately, knowing that time is money.“We have to look at the organisation of the club, because it is not good at the moment. Take the head coach Erik ten Hag for example: he must report directly to the CEO. That is no longer possible in a modern football organisation. We then have to ensure that the right people end up in the right positions. Every person in management must be world class. And then it is important to create a positive, supportive, friendly and high-quality environment. That culture was missing before. Only in such an environment can you get the best out of sportsmen. If successful, the results will follow automatically. That’s the plan and I believe in it” Ratcliffe told the Belgian newspaper De Tijd.Magpies in the way of Man U revamp, demanding 23,500,000 euros for an executiveAnd it‘s not just his words. His actions are a proof of what he thinks, but also kind of a sad reminder that he doesn‘t value much the current executives at Old Trafford. He started his big overhaul with poaching other exectuvies around the league, and they will all come to the club as outsiders. His personal friendships, along with the stature of the club, who is still regarded as one of the most popular in the world allowed him to lure such people as Omar Berrada, who swapped his his ‘chief football operations officer‘ role in Manchester City to join their arch rivals United as the new CEO. Berrada played a huge role in both City and Barcelona where he delt with football and marketing operations. He brokered deals that saw City sign the likes of Erling Haaland and Jack Grealish, as well as generate record revenue from the City Academy.Kipchoge signs for Manchester United! And it’s not even fake newsNext in line is Newcastle‘s sporting director Dan Ashworth, who was put on gardening leave by Magpies as soon as he told them he wants to leave. Ratcliffe‘s right hand man Sir Dave Brailsford (Ineos director of sport) is a long-time friend of Ashworth, who is considered to be the best in business, but he will be paid heavily. Unlike Berrada, Ashworth has a strong contract with the Saudi-owned Newcastle who are furious that United didn‘t even approached them about their executive, so they will play hard-ball and demand 20 million pounds in order to let him go in June, when the transfer business starts. If now, they are prepared to let him sit at home and get his wage until 2026. The third outsider is Southampton’s director of football, Jason Wilcox. Former Blackburn player (won the league with them) was in Manchester City as academy coach before joining the Saints in 2017 as academy director. He will now see his former employer and friend Berrada as they are bound to be united at United.ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUETuesdayMan.City – Brentford 1-0 (0-0)/Haaland 71/Wednesday 22.30: (1.20) Liverpool (7.25) Luton (12.0)***odds are subject to change***
