Jim Ratcliffe wants to knock Man City and Liverpool 'off their perch' within three years

The new Manchester United co-owner is targetting their 'noisy neighbours;

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has set his sights on beating ‘enemies’ Manchester City and Liverpool (Peter Byrne/PA)

Jim Ratcliffe accepts Manchester United have a lot to learn from their “noisy neighbours” Manchester City and Liverpool but is determined to “knock both of them off their perch” within three years as he set out his vision to rebuild the Red Devils.

Ratcliffe, 71, is now co-owner of the club he has supported since the age of six after completing the purchase of a 27.7 per cent stake which delegates control of football operations to his company Ineos.

He set out his ambition to challenge City and Liverpool for domestic and European silverware but called on United fans to be patient, insisting it will take two or three seasons at least for Ineos to get the club to where he wants them to be.

Ratcliffe has plans to redevelop Old Trafford or build a new stadium (Peter Byrne/PA)

In the longer term, he is looking to work with the public sector on either building a new £2billion stadium to regenerate the area around the Old Trafford, which he envisages hosting England games and FA Cup finals, or redevelop the existing site at a cost of £1billion.

“We have a lot to learn from our noisy neighbour and the other neighbour (Liverpool). They are the enemy at the end of the day,” Ratcliffe said.

“There is nothing I would like better than to knock both of them off their perch. Equally, we are the three great northern clubs who are very close to one another.

“They have been in a good place for a while and there are things we can learn from both of them. They have sensible organisations, great people within the organisations, a good, driven and elite environment that they work in.

There is nothing I would like better than to knock both of them off their perch

“I am very respectful of them but they are still the enemy.”

Asked about the timeframe to make United truly competitive, Ratcliffe added: “It’s not a light switch. It’s not an overnight change – it’s going to take two or three seasons.

“You have to ask the fans for some patience. I know the world these days likes instant gratification but that’s not the case with football really.

“It’s not a 10-year plan. The fans would run out of patience if it was a 10-year plan. But it’s certainly a three-year plan to get there.”

Ratcliffe was also asked if Mason Greenwood could have a future at United and replied: “I don’t know. All I can do is talk about the principle of how we will approach decisions like that. Is he the right type of footballer, are we happy with the … is he a good person or not? 

“It’s quite clear we have to make a decision. There is no decision that’s been made. The process will be: understand the facts not the hype and then try and come to a fair decision on the basis of values, which is basically is he a good guy or not? Could he play sincerely for Manchester United – and would we be comfortable with it, and would the fans be comfortable with it?”