Ratcliffe steps up eye-catching Man Utd move for Liverpool heroes as damaging Newcastle raid is rebuffed
New Manchester United investor Sir Jim Ratcliffe has reportedly drawn up a four-man shortlist to become the club’s first-ever sporting director and seemingly has eyes on a legendary Liverpool figure after a move for Newcastle man Dan Ashworth was ruled out.
The British billionaire is still waiting for official confirmation that his 25% purchase into Manchester United has gone through after finally reaching an agreement to buy a quarter of the Glazers’ stake in November. When that does happen, Ratcliffe will effectively take all sporting control at Old Trafford, having the final say on how the club is run and all transfer incomings and outgoings.
In effect, the very future success of Manchester United is in his hands and the buck will stop with him if continues going pear-shaped.
Of course, given the 71-year-old is the UK’s second-wealthiest man, worth an estimated £17.5billion, and has also got lowly Nice challenging for the Ligue 1 title, hopes are burning bright that a bright new era is set to dawn at Old Trafford.
As part of his masterplan, Ratcliffe wants to appoint the club’s first-ever sporting director, who will work alongside him to restructure the United playing squad. To that end, there are expected to be a number of high-profile ins and outs.
And to kick things off, Monday’s Euro Paper Talk claimed Ratcliffe was to use his connections to bring in a €45m-rated France star as his first signing.
However, landing on the right sporting director will also be key, and Ratcliffe’s first-choice for the role – Newcastle guru Dan Ashworth – has reportedly rejected the opportunity and is not willing to leave his current role at St James’ Park.
Man Utd eye Liverpool hero as part of four-man shortlist
According to the Independent, Ratcliffe, alongside Sir Dave Brailsford, who is completing a four-week audit of the club, have drawn up a four-man shortlist for the job – and two men who have strong ties with rivals Liverpool.
However, the No 1 choice for the role, Ashworth, has now been ruled out, given he has to give Newcastle a 12-month notice period and is said to be “reluctant” to leave the North-East.
As a result, Ratcliffe now has his eyes firmly fixed on appointing Michael Edwards to the role, the man credited with transforming Liverpool’s fortunes and helping put the Merseysiders on the path towards Champions League glory.
Having sold Philippe Coutinho for a deal up to £142m and signed Alisson Becker and Virgil van Dijk with the cash, Edwards was also the man who insisted on the £36.9m signing of Mo Salah, the £35m swoop of Sadio Mane and the £29m spent on Roberto Firmino.
As a result, his place in Anfield folklore is firmly established.
He’s been out of work, turning down a string of offers, since departing Anfield in summer 2022.
Per the report, he is Ratcliffe’s No 1 choice to take on the role, though his apparent £10m a year salary demands are proving problematic.
As a consequence, it’s reported that Brailsford would prefer a move for Edwards’ former deputy, Julian Ward, who spent a year in the role at Anfield before departing for personal reasons.
The fourth contender is former Tottenham and RB Leipzig man Paul Mitchell, who is now back in the North-West after leaving Monaco.
Man Utd January transfer plans revealed
Sadly for the Red Devils, it’s reported that no appointment is imminent and, while Ratcliffe does want the new man in place as soon as possible, it is to be done so with the summer window in mind.
In the meantime, United will use the January window to focus more on getting rid of some of the deadwood in Erik ten Hag’s squad. To that end, Donny van de Beek has already left for Eintracht Frankfurt, though a host of other unwanted players look likely to follow.
Ten Hag will be permitted to make one signing – likely to be another striker and with Bayern Munich’s Eric Choupo-Moting a top target. The Cameroon forward is likely to join the Red Devils on loan despite this warning from a former Premier League manager.
His arrival may well be the last one Ten Hag makes as United’s major transfer-decision maker. The current set-up, with Ten Hag picking the targets and football director John Murtough doing the negotiating, is believed to have come in for some criticism from Ratcliffe, who plans to take the majority of the power away from the Dutchman.
And while Ten Hag will have his say on their transfer business, the majority of those decisions will be made by whichever man gets the role above him.
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