Every word from Sir Jim Ratcliffe on Manchester United, Dan Ashworth, Mason Greenwood, Old Trafford and more

A day after his minority stake in Manchester United was confirmed, Sir Jim Ratcliffe held court with journalists at the Ineos office in Knightsbridge.

Ratcliffe, 71, spent an hour with journalists discussing a variety of United-related topics, including plans for Old Trafford, the new structure at the club, Newcastle's posturing over Dan Ashworth, the future of Mason Greenwood, competition from Sheikh Jassim and his intention to dethrone Manchester City.

The Failsworth-born billionaire also addressed why a boyhood United fan had a fleeting interest in buying Chelsea, where he once had a season ticket. Here is the full transcript from Ratcliffe's exchange with journalists:

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SIR JIM, AS A LIFELONG SUPPORTER OF MANCHESTER UNIED, HAS THE LAST DECADE BEEN QUITE PAINFUL?

Ratcliffe: Yeah. It’s been a complete misery really in the last 11 years and it’s just frustrating if you’re a supporter during that period of time. That’s football isn’t it? It has its ups and its downs. I remember pre-Ferguson it wasn’t great for quite some time – for a more extended period of time actually, for about 25 years.

IS THAT YOUR INCENTIVE FOR INVESTING IN THE CLUB? TO TRANSFORM IT INTO WHAT IT USED TO BE?

I suppose the reality of life is that, yeah, it's sort of related in a way because 11 years is a long period of time, isn't it? Fundamentally, you want to see your club being where it should be. It's one of the biggest clubs in the world. It should be playing the best football in the world. Hasn't been doing that for 10 or 11 years. So it’s