Manchester United minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe this week transferred the final tranche of the $300m investment promised at the time the deal with the Glazer family was struck at the turn of the year.
But what does such a financial move mean for Manchester United so close to the January transfer window opening? Ratcliffe’s plan since he arrived at Old Trafford has been to end the era of excess and bring the business costs down against a backdrop of what has largely been competitive failure in the post Sir Alex Ferguson era. Some of the decisions have been deeply unpopular, such as the 250-plus redundancies earlier this year, and while revenues remain strong the club is still losing vast amounts of money, the 2023/24 financial year showing a post-tax loss of £113.2m.
While the temptation will be to think that such a move so close to the window opening seems more than a coincidence, the reality is that won’t be the way that Manchester United work under Ratcliffe and Ineos, with the British billionaire handed football strategy oversight as part of his deal with the Glazers.