SIMON JORDAN: Man United need to be more like Man City… but the idea Sir Jim Ratcliffe will be their saviour is for the birds

• Sir Jim Ratcliffe is set to take a 25 per cent stake in Man United imminently
• Some view him as United’s saviour moving forward, but that talk is nonsense
• Pressure is easing on Man United boss Erik ten Hag: Listen to It’s All Kicking Off

When Jim Ratcliffe finally lands at Manchester United, he could do worse than draw inspiration from Manchester City.

Pep Guardiola has changed that club beyond recognition. They’ve gone from a title-winning side under Roberto Mancini and Manuel Pellegrini to a team so good they defy conventional wisdom. 

Their success hasn’t just come from Guardiola though, it’s come from the support he was given to deploy a clear vision and reach the target the club set for him. Ironically, that’s what United need, to think a bit more like City.

But the idea that Ratcliffe will be some kind of saviour riding in to deliver everything supporters have been crying out for is for the birds, as is the idea he is the financial light to the Glazers dark.

Let’s see if the money he buys the shares with is actually from his own pocket and if it finds its way into United’s coffers rather than the hands of the existing shareholders – predominately the Glazers – with this amazing act of philanthropy.

Pep Guardiola has made Man City the dominant force in European football in recent years

Erik ten Hag’s Man United are trailing in their wake, as the club have been for the past decade

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been hailed as their potential saviour, but that talk is for the birds

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What he will bring is a fresh set of eyes and he could bring some much-needed coherency to the decision-making process of buying and selling players and employing managers.

But Ratcliffe won’t solve all of United’s problems and supporters should be careful what kind of dreams they want to have because they could end up on Elm Street.

Let’s not forget the so-called curse of Ineos. Through that multi-billion pound business, Ratcliffe has his fingers in many sporting pies – and little in the way of success to show for it.

From motor racing and sailing through to cycling, football and rugby, everything Ineos has touched has lacked the key ingredient United fans crave – successful outcomes.

There are some easy wins to be had though. If I was in Ratcliffe’s position the first thing I’d do would be to fix the communication channel between the ownership and its vociferous fans. Demonstrate a cohesive strategy so United look like a progressive club again rather than a regressive one they have appeared to be for too long.

The crumbling stadium and tired training ground can also be invested in – those are easy wins that shut down arguments that have been ‘gimmes’ to dissenting fans. It’s perplexing that the Glazers haven’t shown any inclination to do any of that. Address those issues and take those arguments off the table.

Fixing Old Trafford and upgrading Carrington are not going to take them back to the top though. It’s feeble-minded to think your training ground needs every conceivable bell and whistle to produce a winning team. 

Mail Sport columnist Simon Jordan (pictured) points out that Ratcliffe’s Ineos have not had much success in the sporting world

Ratcliffe can start to win fans over by fixing Old Trafford. The iconic stadium has been mocked for its leaky roof (pictured) in recent years

Look at Tottenham. Their training ground has the admiration of all but hasn’t helped them win anything. But these simple steps can easily be put into motion so it feels like you’re doing something, changing something.

Look at the structure of the football operation and ask if you’re doing everything you could do. Look around and investigate every aspect of where improvements can be made. United are a blue-chip football club but their mindset has not operated that way for too long.

The culture of the club hasn’t pivoted and moved with the times, in fact it’s regressed. In the early years of the Premier League they had low-hanging fruit, a brilliant manager, the most economic might and momentum. But those advantages have gone now. The game has changed. 

There are other people at the table now who have just as much money so you need a change of thinking, a change of strategy to harness the uniqueness of Manchester United. They must go back to having the best in class and out-of-the-box thinking rather than relying on the fact they are Manchester United. That will only get you so far.

The suggestion is that Dave Brailsford, he of the marginal gains theory, will be brought in to sit on top of the football structure. Well, translation of excellence from other sports doesn’t always work.

The culture at United has not moved with the times under the Glazers since they took charge

Dave Brailsford has had huge success in cycling, but the translation of excellence from other sports doesn’t always work

Football is cyclical. United won’t always be in this current situation of one step forward, two steps back, just like City won’t always be a winning machine.

There’s a need to make United fit for purpose again and the introduction of Ratcliffe can be a lightning rod and his presence will enhance the club. He could start setting leadership patterns, cultures of accountability and reintroducing standards in this flagging behemoth of a club. He will certainly put different people into key components of the business to change the direction of travel.

United need to take a long look at themselves and lose their blinkers and expectations. I’m not suggesting they accept they’re not top of the food chain anymore because what you conceptualise in your mind and what you project is ultimately what you end up with. But they’ve got to get back to certain basics and they’ve got to get better people in better positions.

If the core proposition is a successful team then you have to focus on it properly and have a clear vision about what it is you’re trying to achieve. Saying you want to do something but not having the principles and disciplines and people behind you to execute it are two very different things. United have fallen short of that.

I’d assume a bit more control over why money is being spent, where it’s being spent and what it’s being spent on. I’d ensure United have the best possible team and I’d be making sure the manager has everything he really requires.

Erik ten Hag still has plenty of doubters, but could grow with a better structure around him

I am not a subscriber to the belief Erik Ten Hag has ever been the solution to the problem though. From the get-go he didn’t exhibit an outlook or disposition required for the scale and size of United, but with better structures he may grow and prove me wrong.

When City hired Guardiola, they had a target. What is United’s target? What are they trying to achieve? There seems be no consistency and too much background noise. They need to solidify the message and re-enhance in the minds of supporters what that message is as it seems to have been lost.

What is it United should want? The best in class in dugout! Best in class in stadium! Best youth development or stadium or training ground! They don’t have any of those things right now. But they should, there’s no excuse not to, and if Ratcliffe can re-align the club’s thinking from top to bottom, they might just have a chance of making up the lost ground.

Which, with the greatest irony of all, will give the Glazers the biggest benefit in the end. Imagine how much their majority ownership of United will be worth if the club gets it right on the pitch. It’s a trade-off I suspect United fans might just have to accept.

Forest have to keep faith with Cooper 

If the wheels are coming off it’s your responsibility as an owner to make a decision on the manager’s future but that is not the case at Nottingham Forest right now.

It would be unwise and unfair to pull the trigger on Steve Cooper and would be an unnecessary reaction to a few disappointing results.

Forest are building a good side there under a decent manager who has the fans fully behind him.

The owner, Evangelos Marinakis, who has spent money like a drunken sailor needs to temper his ambitions against the reality of building solid foundations. That is what Forest need after so many years out of the Premier League and there’s nothing to indicate those foundations aren’t being built sustainably under Cooper.

Steve Cooper is under pressure at Nottingham Forest, but the club should stand by him

Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis (pictured) needs to temper his ambitions so the club can build a solid foundation in the Premier League

He is a progressive coach and someone the FA could look to one day as a potential England manager. I think he’s got a lot about him. 

I didn’t always agree with how Forest set up away from home a lot of the time last season, there seemed an almost tacit acceptance that they don’t win games away from home.

But unless you’ve got some highfalutin, all-conquering manager that’s going to come in and fix a problem that doesn’t really need fixing then stick with what you’ve got.

Defeat against Everton this weekend will spin the narrative further but I don’t think it’s anywhere near the time to consider taking out one of the most impressive English managers around who’s doing a pretty good job building a team from scratch.

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.

It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.

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