Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s five golden rules for Man Utd signings

Robin Bairner

• 29 May 2024 08:10 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United are set to experience a summer transfer revolution with Sir Jim Ratcliffe at the wheel for the first time.

Ratcliffe and his team from Ineos are taking command of transfers for the first time since completing a minority takeover in the spring.

They have promised a sweeping change of culture at Old Trafford, with the new supremo having put five rules in place for transfers, according to a report in The Sun.

• 1. An age limit of over 25 for new signing.
• 2. No Galacticos.
• 3. The style of play will be set by Jason Wilcox, the club’s new technical director.
• 4. The manager will be asked which position he wants to sign a player in. He will not be asked which player he wishes to sign.
• 5. The manager will be sent a list of three players per position to choose from. These will be selected by Ineos.

READ MORE: Latest Man Utd transfer rumours

What these changes mean for Ten Hag

Man Utd’s new transfer structure is designed to take responsibility away from the manager and place it on more senior figures at the club.

It is still unclear who will be directly in charge of the team next season.

READ MORE: Premier League summer transfers 2024: All the Done Deals

Erik ten Hag will reportedly be sacked, despite winning the FA Cup, with the former Ajax coach having arrived at the club two years ago having been promised a decisive say over transfers – exactly the opposite approach to the one that Ratcliffe is now proposing.

Indeed, it has even been suggested that it has been written into Ten Hag’s contract that he has control over players who join the club, making this seismic shift in policy one potentially difficult to reconcile with the manager and providing further evidence that the Dutchman will leave.