Gary Neville makes 'staggering' Manchester United admission after Luton Town win

Gary Neville is shocked that Manchester United's incoming co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe is being praised for appointing a CEO at Old Trafford.

Over the festive period, United announced that the INEOS founder would be completing a 25 per cent acquisition of the Reds. Accompanied in the announcement, the Reds confirmed Ratcliffe and co would be taking charge of all football operations.

Despite the need to wait for Premier League and FA ratification before it was official, Ratcliffe quickly got to work to alter the boardroom at United. His first major appointment came in January as the Reds poached Manchester City's CEO Omar Berrada.

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The move was widely praised but following United's 2-1 victory over Luton Town on Sunday, Neville insisted he was surprised by just how well it was received. He told Sky Sports: "It was getting to the point where Manchester United analysts were getting mocked for mentioning the Glazers every time they lost a football match, people would say: ‘Well the Glazers aren’t the ones playing football.'

"But for 10 years, every Manchester United manager operated without a CEO, without a sporting director, without a director of football.

"Obviously, Jim Ratcliffe is coming in and appointing a CEO that has actually been at a football club before and everyone is applauding him for it - that’s staggering! I can’t believe it hasn’t happened already, it’d never be allowed to happen at another club in the country.

"Now it’s just normality - putting good people in the right positions isn’t anything special, it’s a sensible thing to do and that’s why it feels like there’s a new energy around the place."

Ratcl