The problem at United is the guy in charge of paperclips must also give Ten Hag a crack squad

FOR an indication of the scale of the task ahead for Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos as they seek to restructure Manchester United’s football operation and return the club to the top, consider this...

The ultimate responsibility for ensuring that there are enough paperclips at Carrington, that the Under 12s have a minibus to take them to their next game and that hotels are arranged for an away match rests on the shoulders of John Murtough. That is John Murtough who is also tasked with ensuring that United battle the likes of City, Liverpool and Arsenal for the planet’s top talent and arm Erik ten Hag with a squad fit to win the Premier League title.

Murtough, who joined the club from Everton at the request of David Moyes a decade ago, also has overall control of football operations, the academy and United’s women’s side.

Unsurprisingly, the situation has been deemed unproductive and ineffective and will change. Other steps will follow quickly.

Insiders say that we can expect a complete overhaul after Ineos’s deal for 25 per cent of the club was finally officially signed off last night. Mail Sport understands that a series of key decisions have already been made. The incomers have identified recruitment as the area which needed immediate improvement. But major shake-ups will occur everywhere.

Sir Dave Brailsford, Ineos director of sport, has been a regular at Carrington and Old Trafford. He has been key to decision-making as the newcomers file a dossier of evidence and an action plan.

INSIDERS have disclosed that while the general view of United is one of a bloated organisation — and that cuts are likely to follow in time — there is a need for more expertise on the football side. That is why Dan Ashworth is likely to arrive from Newcastle United and Jason Wilcox may follow from Southampton. It is also why Omar Berrada has been taken from Manchester City as chief executive.

According to insiders, the aim is to ensure that there is a clear distinction of roles and responsibilities in executive positions.

While it is early in the relationship between Ineos and the Glazers, as Mail Sport revealed last week the view is that Ineos ‘have the keys’.

It will be interesting to see the dynamic when it comes to major financial decisions, such as how to pay for a renovated or rebuilt Old Trafford. But at the moment the Glazers are at ease. They view Ineos, with their wide stable of sporting interests, as better equipped to carry out work they hope will improve performance on the pitch and in turn increase the value of the business.

As Ratcliffe outlined to staff in early, well-received, meetings, what happens on the grass trumps everything else. The view among staff is that football was not always the main consideration as United were turned into a commercial powerhouse.

There is a welcome acknowledgement that the biggest driver of successful PR is performance on the pitch. Under previous management, questions were asked as to why media coverage was so negative when United were on an appalling run of form. A former exec was prone to firing text messages to press officers demanding to know why the media had such a big problem as the club limped through tepid campaigns.

The two big questions being considered are: is there enough expertise in each department, and are there the right numbers of the right people? It is a delicate time for staff as they wait to find whether they will be integrated into the new system, offered a redefined role or left with no future at the club.

As it stands, Ratcliffe sits alongside the Glazers at the top. Next is the PLC board, which includes members of the Glazer family and the likes of interim chief executive Patrick Stewart and chief financial officer Cliff Baty. Then comes the restructured football board, where most decision-making will happen.

Both Brailsford and Jean-Claude Blanc, Ineos chief executive, will take a day-to-day role until they implement their own leadership structure when the aim is to take a step back. Blanc arrived at Ineos following spells at Juventus and PSG.

Also on that board are Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill, who will be leaned on for opinions. A decision on whether to retain long-serving non-executive director Mike Edelson is expected.

The focus within Ineos is on United. The group also own French side Nice, but they may hand over day-to-day involvement to navigate UEFA’s rules on multi-club ownership. A potential conflict of interest — should both clubs qualify for the Champions League — is likely to be addressed by Ratcliffe and European football’s governing body before the end of the season.

One solution could be a restructure of the Cote d’Azur side, which would see Ratcliffe remain as a major investor in the background while others run the club as a ‘stand-alone’ entity.

Brailsford, a key player when Ineos took over at Nice in 2019, has already taken a back seat to focus on the Manchester project.

THE highly regarded Berrada will sit below the board and will be reported to by Ashworth when, as expected, he arrives. Berrada has extensive experience working on both football and commercial sides.

Ashworth will be the ‘football chief’, responsible for recruitment and performance. United are prepared to wait until they get their man in the face of significant demands from Newcastle.

Already, that is an important shift in strategy. Panic buys and wasted fortunes dogged the post-Ferguson years.

On Ashworth, there is a relaxed confidence. Newcastle, despite vast Saudi wealth, are not immune to the Premier League’s financial rules. Should they wish to use precious resources on paying the gardening leave of a man who has told them he sees his future elsewhere, so be it.

Mail Sport understands that United are prepared to do their business in the summer window without Ashworth if need be.

Should Wilcox arrive he is likely to be placed in charge of the performance side, focusing on increasingly important areas such as sports science, on which he will work closely with Brailsford.

It is also understood that another hire to sit alongside Wilcox — who will also report to Ashworth — will follow in due course to focus on recruitment.

The futures of the likes of Murtough, Baty, Stewart and chief operating officer Collette Roche, remain undecided.

In the summer window, the likelihood is of additions in key areas for a club that will go about their business quietly and quickly.

What happens off the pitch may be as interesting. Work is being carried out at speed, with suave Frenchman Blanc central to that. The aim is that when restructuring is completed a spine of top British talent will form the club’s new DNA.

The additional hope is that such DNA will also include winning trophies — and turning United back into a powerhouse.