SIR JIM RATCLIFFE has revealed the first thing Sir Alex Ferguson told him after he bought a stake in Manchester United.
Ratcliffe, 71, has endured a difficult first year at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils went into this weekend languishing in 14th in the Premier League.
While the British billionaire has also drawn criticism for several off-field decisions – including scrapping ticket price concessions and making mass redundancies at United.
Since buying into the Red Devils, Ratcliffe has got to know their legendary former manager Ferguson.
Speaking to The Times, the Ineos chief revealed: “The first thing Alex Ferguson said to me was that the shirt can be too heavy. It applies to everyone here really, the coach, the players — the owner.
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“It’s turning me into an old man. It’s hard to do the interviews. On camera for 40 minutes, one cock-up and you’re legendary for it.
“Remember [jewellery chain chief executive] Gerald Ratner, the guy with the rings? Spent his life building a business -one word, all gone.
“It takes a lot out of you. Because it’s around the world in a heartbeat. It goes viral. Everything is scrutinised.”
Ratcliffe axed Ferguson from his £2m-per-year ambassadorial role last year.
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On the conversation that led to the decision, Ratcliffe said: “I take my hat off to Alex.
“I sat down with Alex, just the two of us in the room, and I said, ‘Look, the club isn’t where you may think it is. It is spending more than it’s earning and we’re going to finish up in some difficulties. Honestly, we can’t really afford to continue to pay you £2 million a year’.
“I said I’m going to, ‘Leave it with you, let you have a think about it’. It was very grown up.
“Maybe a little bit grumpy at the beginning but he got it, and he came back three days later, after talking to his son, and said, ‘Fine, I’m going to step away from it. My decision’. I think it reflects really well on Alex, because he put the club before himself.”
During the wide-ranging interview, Ratcliffe refused to speak negatively about the unpopular Glazer family, calling them “the nicest people on the planet”.
While United fans regularly sing songs criticising the Glazers, chants about Ratcliffe could also be heard during their match at Fulham earlier this season.
‘ENOUGH’S ENOUGH’
On potentially taking abuse from fans, Ratcliffe admitted: “So, eventually, if it reached the extent that the Glazer family have been abused, then I’d have to say, look, enough’s enough guys, let somebody else do this.
“They can’t really come to a match, the Glazers. They’ve retreated into the shadows a bit now, so I’m getting all the bloody stick.
“We bought in and I haven’t seen them since.
“At the moment, I don’t have security, I don’t have to walk around like that.
“But it would defeat the object, wouldn’t it? You couldn’t tolerate it at that level, it just wouldn’t be fun.”
On who is to blame for United’s current toils, Ratcliffe decided to take aim at Richard Arnold and Ed Woodward, rather than the Glazer family.
Ratcliffe said: “I mean, I wouldn’t have tolerated Ed Woodward, or Richard Arnold.
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“Richard was a rugby man, he didn’t even understand football. Ed didn’t have the credentials to manage the club.
“He was a merchant banker, an accountant. He wasn’t the chief executive.”
