Manchester United are widely believed to be stuck in the past when it comes to their footballing operations, mainly due to the Glazers’ apathy.
That could be about to change, if recent reports are to be believed.
Football Insider reports that Sir Jim Ratcliffe is planning to implement a multi-club model, with United expected to be at the front of it.
The boyhood United fan will take over 25% of the club soon, and consequently, become in charge of sporting matters at Old Trafford.
Besides other announcements like committing money for the club’s redevelopment, this announcement will come as the biggest excitement for fans.
The likes of Manchester City have shown that a multi-club model, when implemented correctly, can create a conveyor belt of talent across the world.
Furthermore, with Brexit, English clubs are unable to sign foreign players under the age of 18.
Ethical issues aside, multi-club models help in navigating this issue, as the player is bought by the ownership group, instead of a club, and is transferred later to the desired club under that ownership.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe already has a head start in his plans to implement it at United.
OGC Nice at Ligue 1 and Lausanne in Switzerland are the two big European clubs in his bag and there’s also Abidjan in the African continent under INEOS.
Glazers never really showed interest in growing the club and always seemed happy to take their yearly dividends, while investing the bare minimum (of the club’s money) back into it to qualify for the Champions League.
If United are dragged back into the 21st century by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, then United’s enduring global appeal makes the club a sleeping giant ready to get back to the big time.
Just a few right decisions need to be taken, and Sir Jim Ratcliffe is making all the right noises as of this moment.