20 October 2023 , 18:00
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Sir Jim Ratcliffe's proposed £1.4 billion investment in Manchester United can only be a success if it impacts where it's needed most – on the pitch.
From the outside, it's not easy to see how Sir Jim can change the course of history at Old Trafford if he holds only a 25 percent stake in the club. If the Ineos multi-billionaire is given control of football operations in return for his money, as seems to be the conventional wisdom, he would assume responsibility for results and recruitment.
And United have been falling short in both those areas for a decade since Sir Alex Ferguson retired as manager 10 years ago. There is talk of renovating the stadium and upgrading the training ground, but for 75,000 fans who go to every home game, there is only one measurement to judge Ratcliffe: He has to be a winner.
He has to be a focal point for the supporters' aspirations and ambitions, he has to run the football side of the club with transparency, he has to be accountable and he has to be the leader – even if he doesn't call the shots in the boardroom.
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The Glazers, who still own most of the shares, will continue to keep a low profile amid protests at their running of the club, so Ratcliffe will have to be the corporate face of the club, the man of the people. Time will tell if his investment is the first step towards taking a majority shareholding in Manchester United over the next few years.
Surely a man with a huge track record of success in business would not align himself with the current ruling dynasty if there was no long-term plan to restore United to greatness on the pitch. And only time will tell if his £1.4 billion is enough to make the club credible title contenders again – but there are no guarantees.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe faces a big task on his hands to reverse Man Utd's on-field decline (PA)HAVE YOUR SAY: What does Ratcliffe need to do to resolve United's on-pitch woes? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Chelsea have spent £1 billion on new players in the last three transfer windows and they still look some way off being top-four material, let alone champions. Whatever Sir Jim brings to the table, he is not going to come in armed with any quick fixes. He is not going to reverse 10 years of decline overnight.
Ralf Rangnick may have been a failure as United's interim manager before current boss Erik ten Hag's appointment, but he was right when he warned the club needed “open heart surgery.” And Cristiano Ronaldo's parting shot last year may have ruffled a few feathers, but in essence he was right: “The progress was zero. Since Sir Alex left, I saw no evolution in the club. Nothing had changed.”
It is likely that Sir Dave Brailsford, who has been Ineos group director of sport overseeing Ratcliffe's other investments at Nice, Lausanne and in cycling, sailing and rugby, would be involved in the football operation at United. Brailsford had a stunning record as principal of Team Sky, winning the Tour de France seven years out of eight, and he was branded the Fergie of cycling as the driving force behind Britain's domination of Olympic events on two wheels.
But how much does he know about football? To regain their former glory as one of Europe's powerhouses on the pitch, United will have to attract the very best players – but last summer the likes of Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice all moved elsewhere, so Ratcliffe is going to have his work cut out.
And how will Sir Jim be able to call the shots with his minority stake? Of course it's a much smaller operation, but when my business partner Rob Smethurst and I took over ownership of Macclesfield with the shares split on an 80-20 basis, I assumed control of football operations and Rob ran the business.
We have run the club with transparency so the fans understand why decisions are made and I have a say in the major strategic calls – but Rob, as the majority shareholder, will have the final say. If Sir Jim Ratcliffe's £1.4 billion is going to earn him serious influence in the decision-making process at Old Trafford, good luck to him.
But shared ownership comes with its own inherent risks. Arsenal never lived up to the standards of their Invincibles season after Alisher Usmanov bought a significant minority stake in 2007, which he relinquished in 2018.
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If the Glazers sign off Ratcliffe's bid to invest in the club, the fans will only judge it as a success if it takes Manchester United back to the top. And that's not going to happen overnight.