Manchester United fans were elated to read confirmation of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s investment but a player of his at OGC Nice has sent a concerning warning.
INEOS and United announced on Sunday afternoon that Ratcliffe had bought a 25 per cent stake in United, following more than 13 months of talks. The petrochemicals billionaire is believed to have injected around £1.3billion into the club, plus a further $300m for the development of Old Trafford.
Despite being a minority shareholder, Ratcliffe will take charge of footballing operations at the club and news of his involvement in transfers has encouraged supporters. But his record in the market is not perfect and experienced Nice defender Dante highlighted some of the major issues earlier this year.
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“I think at some point you have to be clear in what you’re saying,” Dante told L’Equipe in May. “To maintain a project, maybe you need to speak less about objectives and work in silence to create an environment of competitors. Because the expectation is even bigger, and then after, people are frustrated.
“Do you remember how many players came in at the end of the transfer window last summer? Six left, six arrived. It’s difficult in these conditions. Simply, we mustn’t make the same errors.
“If someone wants my opinion, the earlier we organise ourselves, the better it will be. If we want to aim higher, we have to anticipate things and put the values of the organisation in place.
“When the coach [Lucien Favre] arrived, we said in two years that we would always be in the Champions League. It doesn’t work like that. Ligue 1 is very difficult. We lost ten players, ten arrived. The teams in the semi-finals of big competitions play together for three, four years. We changed everything last summer.
“There is a lack of coherence somewhere. I am sorry to say that.”
Ratcliffe is unlikely to have any influence over United’s January business, given he has to pass the Premier League’s owners’ and directors’ test which is expected to take six to eight weeks. But the 71-year-old might have some say in changes higher up, with Richard Arnold already leaving his role as chief executive while sporting director John Murtough could follow.
Following Dante’s comments, OGC Nice have improved and are currently second in the Ligue 1 table, behind only Paris Saint-Germain. But United fans will be hoping their new owner has heeded the Brazilians warning and learnt from his past mistakes as he embarks on a new era at OldTrafford.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
