Supporter groups of Manchester United have been informed by new minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe that his goal is not to generate money but to help the team return to the top.
Following an arduous and exasperating 13 months, the Ineos chairman finally revealed on Christmas Eve that the company had agreed to purchase a 25% interest from the Glazer family.
Ratcliffe’s stipulations include taking over football operations at the Premier League club; he told reporters he hopes the agreement is approved by mid-February.
The 71-year-old attended Sunday’s 2-2 Premier League match between Tottenham and Manchester United at Old Trafford. The next day, he went back to interact with supporters and local authorities.
Ratcliffe first had a video discussion with the bigger Fans’ Forum after meeting with representatives of the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust (MUST) and members of the club’s Fans’ Advisory Board.
“We are confident that all United supporters will agree that his primary message was that everything at United needs to be ruthlessly focused on building winning teams on the pitch,” MUST said.
In addition, he stated that he sees our team as a “community asset” and emphasised that he is not buying a share in United with the intention of making money.
“We were able to outline for Sir Jim our priorities, which include a well-defined strategy for returning to the top, establishing a football hierarchy with the right players in the right positions, investing in the teams and the stadium, and fostering a sincere and solid relationship with supporters that fosters success.
“We hope that our conversation with Sir Jim and his team today marks the beginning of a continuing conversation.
“As everyone knows, our club has a long road ahead of us, and the evidence will be in the food.” However, the majority of followers concur that Ineos has put forth optimistic signs in recent weeks.
Ratcliffe was joined in the more than hour-long meeting with MUST by senior United executives, Sir Dave Brailsford, the director of sport of Ineos, and Jean Claude Blanc, the chief executive of Ineos Sport.
While the agreement is being approved, some subjects are off limits, but MUST “felt he was as open as he could be within those rules.”
Ratcliffe’s staff “gets it,” according to a post made by the trust’s chair, JD Deitch, on X, formerly known as Twitter. However, he added that “proof will be action, not words.”
During “really positive discussions,” a fan representative at one of the sessions told the PA news agency that Ineos made it plain that the field’s repairs are the immediate priority.
Ratcliffe’s team seems to be “able to hit the ground running” once the deal is finalised, with Ineos pointing out that player trading needs to be improved.
“I believe that everyone’s impression throughout all of the meetings was that the club owner spending that much time was truly amazing and unprecedented for us at Manchester United,” the fan representative stated.
“The Glazers have not engaged with fans as much in 20 years as they did in one day.” That is merely a fact.
“I’m positive it’s not an accident. It’s a blatant indication that the club is about to change, and it seems like they are acting without waiting for the deal’s specifics to close.
It seems to me that the work has already begun.
Ratcliffe and his group first spoke with fan representatives before meeting with a variety of local officials to talk about Old Trafford’s possible future and United’s place in the town.
Mayor Andy Burnham and other top officials from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Trafford Council were present.
