Berrada, Brailsford, Blanc - Sir Jim Ratcliffe's new look Manchester United board
INEOS founder Sir Jim Ratcliffe is awaiting Premier League ratification before officially joining Manchester United, but he has already managed to shape the boardroom in his image
Manchester United has undergone some big changes in recent weeks which go far beyond the impending arrival of Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
On Christmas Eve, the Reds reached a deal with the British billionaire to acquire a minority stake in the club. The statement said INEOS would be taking over the football project across the men, women and academy teams.
MEN Sport understands 'brutal' changes are afoot at United soon but a lot has changed at the Theatre of Dreams already. With this in mind, we have taken a look at the key players in the United boardroom, both present and past, to see how Ratcliffe's new hierarchy is taking shape.
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Richard Arnold
We begin with a departure. On November 15, more than a month before the Ratcliffe announcement, the Reds announced Arnold would be leaving his role as CEO of the club. His exit was expected with INEOS arriving but it was perhaps accelerated due to how he handled the Mason Greenwood saga.
Patrick Stewart
As Arnold left, United announced Stewart had taken on the interim role as CEO. Having held the role of club legal counsel, Stewart was never viewed as the permanent solution to fill this position. With 17 years experience working across the club and football in general, Stewart was acknowledged as a 'safe pair of hands' while United searched for a new CEO. He is expected to hold this role until the summer.
Omar Berrada
Seen as a coup by many in the industry, Berrada will leave Manchester City to join United as their new CEO. It is expected the switch will be made at the end of the campaign.
In their parting words to Arnold, the club praised him for his work off the field. However, upon announcing Berrada, United were keen to focus on his footballing achievements rather than commercial accolades. This perhaps signifies a shift in approaches to the role of CEO at Old Trafford.
Sir Dave Brailsford
One of Ratcliffe's first appointments to the boardroom was Brailsford. The director of sport at INEOS, Brailsford has become Ratcliffe's right-hand man and undertook due diligence of the club before the 71-year-old parted with his cash. The cycling supremo stepped down from his role as INEOS Grenadiers' team principal this weekend to focus fully on United. Expect him to have a big influence moving forward.
Jean-Claude Blanc
Initially viewed as the frontrunner for the vacant CEO post, Blanc has instead joined the board alongside Brailsford and Ratcliffe. With a wealth of experience at PSG and Juventus, as well as in other sports, he will provide plenty of expertise moving forwards.
John Murtough
United's current director of football is understood by MEN Sport to be on borrowed time. Fact-finding missions found Murtough to be a popular figure at Old Trafford which means he will be stay at the club but reshuffled into an administrative role instead of in recruitment. Names touted to replace him are Newcastle United's director of football Dan Ashworth and former AS Monaco and Tottenham recruiter Paul Mitchell.