Sir Jim Ratcliffe (Courtesy: Manchester United)
Manchester United legend Gary Neville has credited minority owner Jim Ratcliffe for changing the fortunes of the club for the first time in 10 years. Soon after Ratcliffe and INEOS group acquired 25% stake in the company and got the rights to hold sporting decisions, the club appointed the experienced Omar Berrada as their new CEO.
Berrada brings in a vast experience with his last term with the City Football Group. He has been the chief football operations officer since 2020, and previously held roles as group commercial director and director of partnership sales. The decision to appoint him was taken by Ratcliffe and approved by the Glazers.
“How long have we been asking for a CEO that knows football, a sporting director, a sporting department? I can shut up about it now!”, Neville said.
“When you think for 10 years every Manchester United manager has operated without a CEO that”s actually been in a football club before, without a sporting director, without a head of recruitment. It”s madness, forget negligence, it”s just madness. It would never happen at any other club. The more I think about it, what the Glazers have done is show blind loyalty to people who have been really good to them over a long period of time at the club. Ed Woodward was at the club for 10-12 years before he became CEO, he was working on the commercial side. They”ve been very loyal to him and believed everything he said. I”m sure Ed believed in what he was doing as well.
The Erik Ten Hag-managed side are unbeaten in the last seven games across all competitions, including five consecutive wins. On Sunday, Manchester United registered a narrow 2-1 win over Luton Town, courtesy of a brace from their center forward Rasmus Hojlund. The club is currently four points behind Aston Villa.
“The turn in Manchester United”s fortunes has coincided at the point where Jim Ratcliffe came in. I think it might be a little bit of a coincidence. You remember that second 45 minutes against Aston Villa on Boxing Day which damaged Villa. The two Manchester United games will really damage Unai Emery because they played really well in both games.
“They hammered United in the first half. United were breathtaking in that second half, that was Jim Ratcliffe”s first game as it were as he”d been announced on Christmas Eve. It has been an about-turn. I think what Jim Ratcliffe has done, he”s come in and said to all of them, I”m looking at every single one of you lot. You”re all playing for your future.”
“They have got the players back, Casemiro was out for a long time, and they had players out in key positions, so there was an element of that but I do believe the mood has changed. What the fans wanted, what everyone connected with United was just some interference with the complete and utter tosh we”ve seen for 10 years. What”s happened is the boardroom has been disrupted, which means there”s a completely new energy with decisions being made.”
United will now aim to extend their lead against Fulham in the Premier League clash on Saturday.
