Ineos have driven a lot of change at Manchester United in the nearly seven months since officially taking charge.
So far, they have surpassed even the most optimistic fans’ expectations, already establishing a new executive structure, getting new staff to support Erik ten Hag, and starting architectural projects.
There is a wave of momentum and a fresh energy around the club and Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his team can be credited for a lot of it.
The players clearly feel the effects as multiple have already said the new owners have brought renewed impetus with their decisive leadership.
However, not everything is rosy behind the scenes and now Jonny Evans has revealed his thoughts on their most divisive move at Old Trafford, arguably echoing many fans’ feelings.
Jonny Evans on Ineos’ unpopular move
Fixing United’s financial situation has been Ineos’ primary agenda since day one of taking over the club and its sporting affairs.
To that end, they have stressed a pivot in the market towards younger players and are fighting to reset United’s image in the transfer market as well.
Better contracts with bonuses instead of high base salaries are being pushed and incentives given to staff have also been reduced.
The move which has made the most negative headlines for them, however, has been downsizing the staff, as nearly 250 people are under threat of losing their jobs.
Some already have, while others can feel the axe dropping anytime now, including those who have been here for decades.
Jonny Evans, who knows a thing or two about being at United for a long time, has now revealed how difficult and sad it has been to see it happening.
He was asked after the Arsenal game if the club feels more organised now and while he did give credit to Ineos for having a clear plan, stressed the ethos of United.
He said (as quoted by The Guardian): “They’ve got an idea of how they want the structure, but as someone who’s been at the club, I had a spell away, but been at the club a long time: a lot of people [are in danger of losing] their jobs this last couple of weeks.
“It’s been hard and difficult to see. The new owners feel that’s the direction that they want to go. But it’s not been easy for everyone at the same time.
“There’s people you’ve known for 20 years and the timing of it happened as we came away on tour pretty much. But it’s been a difficult thing to see – people I’ve known for a long, long time. One thing about working in a club like Man United, you’re all in and everyone’s always been all in. It’s a big massive staff but I think that’s just been the culture of the club.
“The fact that the club is built on the academy also has a big part in that because players have been there for such a long time from a young age and the academy players have always sort of set the culture. And the staff that have been there the whole way through, they promoted them through the club and people who work with the ticket office move through departments.
“That’s been the nature of the culture, how it’s always been built and it’s a huge plus for the club. We want to maintain that as much as possible.”
A tricky balancing act
Many fans are likely to resonate with Evans’ message and he is a trusted voice when it comes to raising this issue due to his long relationship with the club.
Having said that, it was reported earlier that out of all Premier League clubs, United had the biggest staff and the Ineos playbook has been the same everywhere.
They trim the workforce in a process they call “streamlining” and try to create a more focused and high-performing atmosphere.
United are set to get rid of academy coaches who have been at the club for decades which will be a culture shock to many youngsters as well.
Therefore, it is a tricky balancing act for Ineos to balance the culture of the club with ruthless cuts. While it can be accepted that United have long carried too many passengers, on and off the field, going too much towards the other extreme can have a permanent damaging effect on the culture and atmosphere.
So far, they have handled it smartly but as the players have started speaking about it, they might have to put brakes on it and go about it in a more sensitive way.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
