- Man United’s new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe was pictured in London
- The British billionaire has had his work cut out for him since arriving at the club
- He was seen leaving the Arlington restaurant in Mayfair on Thursday night
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Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe was seen leaving a lavish Mayfair restaurant as he enjoys a drink from his extensive work at Old Trafford.
The British billionaire would have had plenty to smile about last weekend after United’s dramatic FA Cup win over their biggest rivals.
But he still has a lot to think about after admitting this week that there are ‘many aspects’ of Manchester United that he and INEOS need to put right – insisting it will be a ‘long way’.
He could mull over his work at the Red Devils while enjoying a meal at the Arlington restaurant in Mayfair.
The 71-year-old was seen leaving the scene and being driven away in a white INEOS Grenadier.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe was pictured leaving the Arlington restaurant in Mayfair on Thursday night
Ratcliffe left the lavish Mayfair restaurant and was driven away in a white INEOS Grenadier
Ratcliffe enjoyed some downtime from his extensive work since becoming owner of Manchester United
One of the many topics on the agenda for Ratcliffe and INEOS is the future of Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford.
Despite United’s excellent win against Liverpool, it has been a poor season and they face a huge battle to qualify for next season’s Champions League with nine points between them and fourth-placed Aston Villa.
There have been reports that Ratcliffe is increasingly confident of tempting England boss Gareth Southgate to Old Trafford.
It was claimed that Southgate, who has been England boss since 2016, has the backing of some of United’s current players – and also incoming director of football Dan Ashworth.
Southgate’s contract with the Three Lions expires in December this year after the European Championships in Germany, with the Football Association keen to get him to extend it.
A key decision has already been made with Omar Berrada joining from rivals Manchester City as United’s new chief executive, while Ashworth is set to arrive as director of football from Newcastle United.
Ratcliffe appeared on the Geraint Thomas Cycling Club’s podcast this week, talking about the club’s future stadium plans.
He believes Manchester United should aim to emulate Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona by playing at ‘world class’ Old Trafford with up to 100,000 fans.
The future of Erik ten Hag is one of the biggest issues Ratcliffe will have to address in the coming months
Reports have suggested they could try to tempt Gareth Southgate to Old Trafford
Ratcliffe told Geraint Thomas there are ‘many aspects’ for him and INEOS to get right at Man United
The Ineos billionaire, who paid £1.3bn to buy a 27.7 per cent stake in United, has already declared his intention to either revamp Old Trafford or build a new ‘Wembley of the North’.
Ratcliffe wants England internationals and even major cup finals to be moved away from Wembley and held at the new venue.
He also told Thomas of the scale of the task ahead of him as he opened up about INEOS’ plans.
Ratcliffe said: “It’s not a light switch, it’s a much longer road to travel because there are so many aspects of that club and the game that you need to get right.”
He added that getting the right people in the right place at Old Trafford would be a ‘big part’ of Sir Dave Brailsford’s job.
Ratcliffe also wants Man United to emulate Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona by playing at ‘world class’ Old Trafford with up to 100,000 fans.
He said: ‘That’s where you start when you think about it, you need the right organizational structure because football clubs, in the old days with Sir Alex Ferguson, was the manager.
‘We don’t have managers today, we have a coach who will usually report to the sporting director and they will report to a chief executive.
“So you’ve got to get to the place where you’re putting recruiting, strategizing all that kind of stuff — you’ve got to get that organization right and populate it with the best-in-class people.”
