Gary Neville hails Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS for their 'staggering' impact at Manchester United...highlighting how 'simply putting good people' into important positions is helping transform the club

Gary Neville has hailed Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS for their 'staggering' impact at Manchester United - claiming they are simply 'putting good people' into important positions. 

Ratcliffe's 25 per cent stake in Manchester United is set to be officially confirmed next week as INEOS have received Premier League approval and are now awaiting the final nod from the Football Association before the formalities of the deal are completed. 

Ratcliffe and INEOS will be responsible for football operations at the Premier League club going forwards and revealed their plans to turn Old Trafford into the 'Wembley of the North'. 

Neville is excited about the direction the club is heading in - claiming Ratcliffe wasn't doing anything special, that he was simply being 'sensible' by 'putting good people' in the right positions. 

Neville's comments came shortly after Manchester United beat Luton Town 2-1, with Rasmus Hojlund bagging a brace in the first 10 minutes of the fixture on Sunday afternoon. 

Neville's comments came shortly after Manchester United beat Luton Town 2-1

Speaking after the game at Kenilworth Road, Neville said: 'The idea that Ratcliffe's come in and appointed a CEO that's been at a football club before it's staggering. It's not anything special, putting good people into the biggest club in the world is a sensible thing to do. 

'The Glazers have literally shown blind loyalty to people who have been really good to them. Woodward was at the club for 10-12 on the commercial side. For ten years it was a bit like they were playing Football Manager.'

Neville went on to add: 'He [Hojlund] may have got a game a few months ago. I think the mood has changed. The fans wanted some interference with the tosh we've seen for ten years.' 

This isn't the first time the Sky Sports pundit has praised Ratcliffe's involvement at Manchester United. Neville told the Stick To Football podcast, via United in Focus, the his arrival was a step in the right direction. 

'I'm not saying that he's going to go into Manchester United and be successful but if you've got the guy in from City which obviously they have now, you brought Dan Ashworth in, at least you've got people in roles that belong. In the last 10 years, there haven't been people in roles that belong, so there's a start of something.

'Look there's disruption there's interference with the mediocrity that we've seen in the last 10 years already if he comes in I do think there's a chance that you know you've got that sort of performance mentality that excellence mentality that they do have that could run through the club quite quickly.

'I've no doubt no Jim Ratcliffe is obviously trusting in Dave Brailsford, to say look you know basically we need the best CEO the best sporting director the best head of Recruitment and the best coach. 

'The two that have got yet to be sorted are the head of Recruitment and Coach but they're doing it one by one obviously aren't they, you know if Dan comes he'll want I suspect authority at the club to be able to make decisions.'

Ratcliffe wants to change the culture, focusing on recruits who are ideally British and who fit into a longer-term plan for success rather than being quick fixes.

In so doing, he'll hope United can make up the ground they have ceded to the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal, whose recruitment has coherence and direction.

To accomplish this, Ratcliffe and INEOS want best-in-class appointments in influential positions.

They've already pulled off one coup in poaching the highly-regarded Omar Berrada from rivals City to become their new chief executive. But fans will be more interested in the recruitment side.

If United get their way, it looks like Dan Ashworth will come in as sporting director, with Jason Wilcox and Sam Jewell reporting in to him in an overhauled scouting and recruitment department.

Getting Ashworth, 52, who is currently Newcastle's sporting director would undoubtedly be another impressive appointment by the new United regime.

As Mail Sport reported earlier this week, Ashworth is keen to take on the challenge and an agreement could soon be reached, smoothed by the fact Newcastle's Saudi owners haven't given him the broad remit he anticipated.

More to follow...