Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane has bluntly told the club’s new part owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, to focus on issues on the field.
Manchester United recently received a £1.3 billion investment from the Sir Ratcliffe-led INEOS Group for 25 percent of the club. That investment allows INEOS Group full control of the footballing side of things at Manchester United, while the Glazers can focus on other aspects of the club.
It is not the exact outcome that the fans want, but it is a win in their eyes. This is because the Glazers and their people are now rid of the responsibility of running the football club, one which they have failed at in the last decade.
Sir Ratcliffe and his INEOS Group are still settling but lots of speculation has followed over the changes that the club will experience in the next few months. Keane is not willing to discuss any of them, instead advising the new football administrators at the club to focus on matters concerning their performances on the pitch.
Speaking just before Manchester United progressed to the next round of the FA Cup with a 2 – 0 win over Wigan Athletic, Keane said: “It can’t be any worse than it has been over the last few years in terms of decision making, people making decisions upstairs in regard of recruitment, the fees they’ve been paying out, the wages they’ve been handing out.
“You hope there’s a change of dynamics at the club, new opinions. But only time will tell.”
“Get some results. We’ve seen the draw, it’s kind of an easy tie for them. It’s the only trophy they can win this season. Focus on the football. Hopefully, decisions from upstairs will improve over the next few years.”
People from INEOS Group have been attending Manchester United games since the takeover was confirmed, most notably Sir David Brailsford, INEOS Group’s director of sport and Jean Claude Blanc, INEOS Group’s chief executive. Sir Ratcliffe, however, has yet to attend a game.
Reports claim that he could attend his first game when the Red Devils face off against Spurs on Sunday in the Premier League. They also claim that the 71-year-old business mogul intends to inject some of his funds to create some wiggle room in their financial fair play standings to help them with their January transfer window dealings.
This injection of funds will see United have up to £300 million to deal with for the next two transfer windows outside of any funds they receive from player sales.
