Sir Jim Ratcliffe 'has 'earmarked transfer guru for Manchester United role' if he completes takeover

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has 'earmarked' transfer guru Paul Mitchell for a significant role at Manchester United if his takeover of the club is completed, according to a respected journalist.

Ratcliffe submitted his latest bid for the club prior to last Friday's 10pm deadline, with the Daily Mail's Mike Keegan claiming his offer valued the club higher than the one submitted by Sheikh Jassim and his Nine Two Foundation.

Furthermore, it was reported by the same source that the Ratcliffe bid, submitted in partnership with INEOS, contained a proposal that would see him buy either a 69 per cent stake of the club, or just over 50 per cent if Joel and Avram Glazer stay in their roles.

The Daily Record's Duncan Castles then claimed that the Glazers could retain their shares after the takeover, or sell them at a 'guaranteed additional premium' during the first two years of the new regime.

And it has been said that Ratcliffe is 'confident' that a deal will go ahead to make him the next majority owner of Manchester United.

Now, more details have been reported on what a successful takeover could mean for the future structure of the club.

Ratcliffe 'transfer plan revealed'

According to Ben Jacobs, Mitchell could take up a role at United as part of the project if Ratcliffe and INEOS - who are a principal partner of the Mercedes F1 team - do take over, but the specifics of that role are yet to be reported.

However, the Englishman has extensive transfer experience, having been head of recruitment during successful spells at Southampton and Tottenham under Mauricio Pochettino.

He then took up a similar role at RB Leipzig, and is currently at Monaco. He will leave the Ligue 1 club this summer, with his future steps yet to be decided.

But the key statement from Jacobs' report is that Mitchell has been previously considered as a contender to take up a role at Nice - who are owned by Ratcliffe and INEOS.

It is clear, therefore, that the regime certainly has faith in the 41-year-old to take charge of their project, and his signings record - which includes Dele Alli, Toby Alderweireld and Son Heung-min for Spurs - suggests he can certainly take United forward on the transfers front if given a specific recruitment role.

Topics: Manchester United, Premier League

Ryan Smart

Live in constant hope of the top flight as a Preston North End fan. Written in the past for SPORF, GiveMeSport and more.