Man Utd sporting director hunt takes fresh turn as Sir Jim Ratcliffe targets former Liverpool chief Michael Edwards to oversee new era

Having reached an agreement on the general terms of the transaction, the Glazer family and Ratcliffe are still debating the specific legal details of how Manchester United's ownership structure would be structured following INEOS' acquisition of a 25 per cent interest. The takeover would mean that Ratcliffe would take control of the sporting department of the club and with Richard Arnold having left as the club's chief executive, the space for a chief is now open at United - and Ratcliffe is eyeing Edwards as the new man.

With their search for a sporting director, the club has also looked at Paul Mitchell and Dougie Freedman. Mitchell is the current Sporting Director of Monaco while Freedman holds the reigns at Crystal Palace. Both reports though have suggested that a deal is far from being struck as, despite the interest, there hasn't been a conversation between the clubs and their potential targets.

Edwards had been at Liverpool ever since he left Tottenham Hotspur in 2011 before he retired and left the club in 2022. With the club, Edwards has fulfilled the roles of Chief Analyst, Head of Methodology, Technical Director and Sporting Director.

According to The Independent, INEOS realised immediately that the Glazers had no true intention of selling altogether, and talks on a minority interest have reportedly been ongoing since May. There have been some hesitant private discussions about the ultimate football system, but Ratcliffe and his team like to thoroughly examine how the club operates once they are in place before making any definite conclusions.