Sir Jim Ratcliffe has already made decision on Erik ten Hag's future at Manchester United

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has already made a decision on Erik ten Hag's future at Manchester United, according to a new report.

Ratcliffe has reportedly agreed a deal to acquire a 25 per cent stake, believed to be worth between £1.3 to £1.5 billion, of Manchester United from the Glazer family.

The Telegraph claim that the 70-year-old has negotiated a clause which will see himself and his petrochemicals company, INEOS, assume control of footballing operations at Old Trafford.

Should the deal be agreed on by a 12-strong board during a proposed meeting this weekend, Ratcliffe will have a busy in-tray of tasks to tackle.

While longer-term tasks involve renovating the stadium and refinancing or paying off the club's debt - as well as potentially acquiring a larger ownership stake over time - Ratcliffe's first key decisions will involve footballing matters.

And according to the Daily Mirror, the British billionaire wants to appoint a new sporting director, with a five-person shortlist in place.

It is claimed that Monaco sporting director Paul Mitchell is on the list, as well as ex-Liverpool supremo Michael Edwards.

But while that section of the management team is set to change - with current director of football John Murtough's future yet to be confirmed - it appears that may be the only change for now.

ESPN report that, as per sources, Ratcliffe and his team are impressed by manager Erik ten Hag, and he remains part of their plans moving forward.

It is added that, despite the recent run of poor results suffered by United, the preference of INEOS is to keep Ten Hag and his team in place.

The notion of allowing Ten Hag to leave would have been unthinkable in the summer. The Dutchman won the Carabao Cup and securing Champions League qualification for this season - and has been badly affected by player injury issues this term.

But unlike at INEOS-owned Nice - a club that have had six managers since December 2020 - continuity on the pitch looks to be the key message by United's prospective new minority owners.

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