Sir Jim Ratcliffe draws up five-man shortlist to become Man Utd's new sporting director

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has already drawn up a five-man shortlist as he looks to hire a new sporting director at Manchester United.

British billionaire and INEOS boss Ratcliffe is set to agree a 25 per cent stake in United after it was reported that Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani and his Qatari consortium have pulled out of the race.

Although Ratcliffe’s bid will still see the Glazers remain the majority stakeholder, it is believed that the INEOS team will be in charge of the football operations whilst the Americans head up the commercial side.

Ahead of his proposed deal, Ratcliffe has reportedly drawn up a shortlist of candidates for United’s new sporting director.

According to the Daily Mirror, former Monaco and Tottenham Hotspur chief Paul Mitchell is on Ratcliffe’s list.

The 42-year-old left Monaco last month and is highly regarded around Europe having been linked with Liverpool too.

Newcastle United sporting director Dan Ashworth is also believed to be on the radar but it will take a huge sum of money to lure him away from the North East.

Former Liverpool sporting directors Julian Ward and Michael Edwards are also said to be attracting interest from Ratcliffe.

However, their ties with the Anfield club could make it difficult.

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Lastly, INEOS CEO Jean Claude Blanc is said to be on the wanted list.

Blanc became the CEO of INEOS’ sporting empire which includes teams in football, rugby, Formula 1 and cycling.

The Frenchman has also worked at big European clubs such as Juventus and Paris Saint Germain in the past.

According to The Times, the INEOS team’s first priority is to shake up United’s playing squad and football staff.

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