Sir Jim Ratcliffe has opened up on his desire to stop Manchester City’s dominance, his biggest issue with football and plans to build a new stadium.
The INEOS chief purchased a 27.7 per cent stake in United earlier this year and his impact since joining has already been clearly felt. Omar Berrada was appointed CEO with Jason Wilcox and Dan Ashworth set to form part of United’s new technical operations team.
The 2023/24 season has been another mixed campaign for United but they will hope to end it with a trophy as they vie for a spot in the FA Cup final against Manchester City. To get there though, United will have to beat Championship side Coventry City at Wembley in the semi-finals.
The 2023/24 season has been another mixed campaign for United but they will hope to end it with a trophy as they vie for a spot in the FA Cup final against Manchester City. To get there though, United will have to beat Championship side Coventry City at Wembley in the semi-finals.
With the showpiece clash to be played in the capital, numerous fans have travelled down from Manchester and the Midlands to take in the action, however they won’t be the only visitors in the capital. The 2024 London Marathon has also taken place today and Ratcliffe was one of the thousands running the 26.2 mile race.
After finishing the marathon, Ratcliffe was interviewed live on BBC Sport where he delved into a number of topics which included firing a clear warning to Man City. “We’d definitely be the underdogs [if we reached FA Cup final against Man City], unfortunately, not for long though.”
When asked about the comparisons between running a marathon and running Man United, he said: “There are some parallels. It just requires some grit. In the marathon after the 30k it gets quite difficult and I don’t think we’re quite at 30k in the football at the minute. We’re not even [at a half marathon] yet either. We’re probably at 10k.”
One of the biggest problems in football is getting these new guys to come into the team but they’re all on gardening leave, so it takes you 6, 12 or even 18 months before they come in. It’s a real issue in football. To make a change you need to bring new people in.”
“They can’t work for us and the fans are impatient and I knew that but it’s a journey and people, whether they like it or not, have to be patient. It’s not a sprint we can’t just turn it around like that but I’m sure we will.”
On plans to build a new stadium, he added: “I’d love to do that. I think that would be fantastic for the north of England. That whole area of southern Manchester, it’s where the industrial revolution began and that’s why they built Old Trafford because the workers would finish their shift and walk to the ground.
“So it was where industry and manufacturing began, so it is a really important area but it is run down. So to regenerate that area and build a Wembley of the north, I think would be a marvellous project.”
Man Utd ‘put Marcus Rashford up for sale’ after new contract baffles Sir Jim Ratcliffe
Marcus Rashford’s Manchester United future has plunged into doubt as Sir Jim Ratcliffe eyes player sales.
Manchester United have reportedly put Marcus Rashford in the shop window ahead of the summer transfer window as Sir Jim Ratcliffe continues enacting ruthless change as co-owner. Ratcliffe has already shaken up the United hierarchy but is said to be keen on proving that no underperforming player is safe under his watch.
The 71-year-old has wasted no time in making moves to restore a winning culture at Old Trafford, which has been missing throughout the 11 years since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement.
United have replaced chief executive Richard Arnold with Omar Berrada in a disruptive pursuit of best-in-class appointments from the football world.
John Murtough has also left the club, and Newcastle United sporting director Dan Ashworth will succeed him once he’s served his gardening leave.
Southampton chief Jason Wilcox has also jumped ship to join the INEOS revolution and is set to replace Darren Fletcher as technical director in the coming weeks.
Ratcliffe’s new-look team helming football operations is almost in place, and the summer transfer window marks the first opportunity to chop and change Erik ten Hag’s squad in search of improvements on the pitch.
According to Football Transfers, United are open to cashing in on Rashford to help fund the club’s transfer business this summer amid Financial Fair Play restrictions.
An inevitable failure to qualify for the Champions League would increase the strain on the club’s accounts and limit their potential in the market ahead of the first full season of the INEOS regime.
So United are said to be planning to shift multiple homegrown players to raise pure profit that can be re-invested into upgrades. Rashford is not immune to the firing line.
The report adds that the decision to hand the 26-year-old a bumper new contract worth £425,000-a-week, inclusive of bonuses, raised eyebrows among INEOS figures.
Rashford was coming off a career-best 30-goal season last summer, but INEOS reportedly wouldn’t have signed off on the blockbuster deal if they had inherited control from the Glazer family.
It’s claimed Rashford could be one of as many as 10 first-team players sold this summer, with United at risk of suffering their worst-ever Premier League season.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Harry Maguire, Scott McTominay, Jadon Sancho, and Mason Greenwood are homegrown players among those likely to be in the shop window this summer.
Raphael Varane, Donny van de Beek, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen and Anthony Martial are also expected to depart in what could turn into a mass exodus in M16.
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