Sir Jim Ratcliffe is sizing up a Liverpool hero who could usher in a new period of domination at Manchester United, and how the club's structure will look once the partial takeover is confirmed has been revealed.
Ratcliffe is primed to purchase a 25 percent stake in The Red Devils. According to The Athletic's David Ornstein, the partial takeover is a matter of when and not if. However, Ratcliffe is not expected to be installed until next week at the earliest with the USA now in the grip of 'Thanksgiving Day Mode' for the upcoming weekend.
Once the British billionaire's purchase has been ratified, Ratcliffe will assume full sporting control of the club. His initial investment into United is also expected to lead to a full buyout of the unpopular Glazer family further down the line.
The effects of Ratcliffe's looming takeover have already been felt at Old Trafford. Indeed, CEO Richard Arnold will step down before the end of 2023, while director of football, John Murtough, is also in line to be replaced.
Legal counsel Patrick Stewart will take Arnold's place in an interim capacity, though ex-PSG official, Jean-Claude Blanc, has been lined up as the long-term successor.
Regarding who'll replace Murtough as director of football, The Telegraph listed six names under consideration.
However, according to a fresh update from The Independent, a seventh name can be added to that list - ex-Liverpool chief, Michael Edwards.
The Independent state Ratcliffe is considering the 44-year-old who is admired not only by Ratcliffe, but also by INEOS' overarching director of sport, Sir Dave Brailsford.
Can Edwards repeat Liverpool miracle at Man Utd? Edwards left Liverpool in 2021 having overseen a remarkable resurgence at the club. Edwards initially arrived at Anfield in 2011 and as their sporting director, worked miracles in the transfer market in the Jurgen Klopp era specifically.
Indeed, the likes of Joel Matip (free), Andy Robertson (PS8m), Georginio Wijnaldum (PS25m), Sadio Mane (PS34m), Mohamed Salah (PS37m) and Fabinho (PS39m) were signed on his watch.
Liverpool also made Alisson Becker the most expensive goalkeeper in world football at the time and broke their club record for Virgil van Dijk. Both of those mammoth purchases quickly proved value for money and the pair are modern-day Liverpool legends.
United have become synonymous with failure in the transfer market and a worryingly high proportion of their big-money signings have not worked out.
Harry Maguire, Paul Pogba, Donny Van de Beek, Jadon Sancho and Antony, to name just five, all fit that billing.
Giving Edwards the type of budget United can muster would certainly be a sight to see.
The Independent state it's as yet unclear whether Edwards would be willing to accept a call from Ratcliffe. But what is clear is the interest from Ratcliffe and those within INEOS is concrete.
Regarding how United's structure will work under Ratcliffe, the report claims the new director of football 'would form a group feeding up to Jean-Claude Blanc under Ratcliffe, with input from Sir Dave Brailsford.'
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