Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who eventually reached a £1.3 billion agreement with the Glazers, is prepared to implement big changes at Manchester United.

Ratcliffe, the chairman and founder of INEOS, will only own a 25% share, but he and his colleagues, who are 71 years old, will run United’s football department in addition to investing an additional $300 million (£236 million) in the team. He criticised the club’s transfer policies sharply in his comments.

“Whilst the commercial success of the Club has ensured there have always been available funds to win trophies at the highest level, this potential has not been fully unlocked in recent times,” said Ratcliffe, a lifelong Red Devils supporter who eventually plans to become United’s majority owner.

This has brought attention to the individuals he believes are unsuitable to play at Old Trafford, with seven players standing out.First off, unless Donny van de Beek, a soon-to-be confirmed Eintracht Frankfurt loanee, stays at Old Trafford, Jadon Sancho is the clear choice to go in January, when Ratcliffe’s contract is anticipated to be approved. Sancho, who United pursued for more than a year before spending £73 million on him in 2021, has not even appeared for the team since August due to a public falling out with manager Erik ten Hag. In the winter window, a reunion with former club Borussia Dortmund seems all but guaranteed, making a split seem inevitable.

Keeping with the out-of-favor players, Anthony Martial is scheduled to depart United when his contract expires in the summer of 2020, though he may move sooner if the Red Devils are able to find a buyer. The 28-year-old French striker has fallen short of expectations and is seen by many United supporters as the embodiment of the club’s long-standing problems that have allowed overpriced and underperforming players to stay around too long.Ten Hag’s largest acquisition, Antony, who sticks in the forward line, might also end up on the cutting board. After a run of lacklustre performances both this season and last, the former Ajax winger has failed to live up to the £85 million price tag, and fans’ patience is really wearing thin.

Conversely, Brazilian teammate Casemiro had a fantastic rookie season but had a sharp decline in 2023–24. After a three-month break due to injury, the former Real Madrid midfielder seemed to have lost his spark. Notably, during a meeting with club executives earlier in the year, Ratcliffe privately opposed his £60 million entrance that summer.

Raphael Varane, his longtime Madrid teammate, has also seen a sharp decline in his career this season as rumours of a move to Saudi Arabia have become stronger before his contract expires in June. Due to a slew of defensive ailments, the World Cup-winning defender has just recently recovered his spot under Ten Hag. He also much misses regular partner Lisandro Martinez, who has been one of United’s better—though still expensive—new acquisitions but is still out.

Victor Lindelof is another centre back who is probably going to say farewell in June. Since joining United from Benfica in 2017, Lindelof has simply never performed well in crucial situations. The 29-year-old Swede is currently the captain of his nation, but the only reason he has been able to play under Ten Hag is because of injuries to players like Varane. Ten Hag may be looking to let the Swede go in January.

Ratcliffe is expected to take a more strict stance on contracts; however, Lindelof, Varane, and Martial all have one-year options that might be activated in the summer. But after hearing Old Trafford great Gary Neville’s recent remarks, it’s hard to argue in favour of giving some of those players lengthier contracts.”They will let you down when they give you a glimmer of hope that they might be on track, they go lose a game they shouldn’t,” Neville said of the United team on his Sky Sports podcast on Saturday after the team’s crushing 2-0 loss to West Ham. “On Boxing Day, they play Aston Villa, but four days later, they could lose to Nottingham Forest.

That’s just what we watch, and that’s how ridiculous it is. Being inconsistent is a very terrible quality in every area of life; you should always be dependable and consistent. It’s quite significant. The club’s culture failures extend throughout the entire organisation, contributing to United’s uneven play and deeper difficulties that can only be resolved by new ownership.”