The changes were inevitable as soon as Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his company took their stake in Manchester United.
The boyhood United fan had made no qualms about the fact that he didn’t like much how the club was run so winds of change would blow.
Although their effect on the pitch hasn’t been seen yet, there has been wide-scale upheaval off the pitch, personnel-wise or infrastructure.
As always with change, some changes have been received positively, some negatively, and some have left employees outright “disgusted”.
Now, former Aston Villa CEO, Keith Wyness, in an interview with Football Insider, via the Daily Mail, has gone in hard on Sir Jim’s style of decision-making, likening it to a dictatorship.
Wyness said that the INEOS chief is looking at the club and its operations through the lens of a regular INEOS operation but football is “much more organic”.
He said Ratcliffe’s style of decision-making is a throwback to old-school and could hinder “fresh thinking”.
He said: “Ever since he and his team have got near the building, he’s felt there’s too much waste, not enough engagement, not enough spirit.
“He could be trying to compare it to his INEOS business, which would be a mistake. Football clubs are a lot more organic than industrial businesses – there are huge differences.
“Football is so heavily reliant on human beings. Ratcliffe is very hands-on himself. We’ve gone back to an old-fashioned dictatorship style, to a degree.
“I hoped he might be a bit more enlightened. We might see some fresh thinking, but he’s gone back to some old-fashioned management principles.”
Some people, especially a few United employees who have been told to resign early to get their bonuses if they don’t return to the office, might be inclined to agree.
However, ultimately, the regime is doing what it thinks is needed to jolt the club back from its more than a decade-long slumber.
The results of this policy can only been seen long-term but in current circumstances, majority of fans would probably be just thankful that any decision is being made at all.
Now just for that managerial future announcement…!
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