Ineos have two urgent £150m reasons to make Dan Ashworth appointment their No. 1 Man United priority

Official confirmation of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s 25% stake in Manchester United took a step forward on Tuesday with confirmation the Premier League has approved the deal. There remain a few minor boxes to tick, but Ineos will soon have the keys to Old Trafford.

Not that that has stopped them from making an impact so far. Ratcliffe has already met staff and held talks with Erik ten Hag, while Sir Dave Brailsford, the Ineos head of sport, has been omnipresent at Carrington and Old Trafford. The appointment of Omar Berrada as chief executive had their fingerprints all over it.

The first few weeks of the Ineos tenure were always likely to be busy. They have been helped by an upturn in results on the pitch, which is allowing them to focus on the changes required behind the scenes for now. Berrada’s appointment fits that approach and Brailsford is continuing to run the rule over the club’s football structure.

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The future of the stadium will be high on Ratcliffe’s list of priorities between now and the end of the season but with formal approval of the investment close, the most pressing matter for now is the appointment of a new sporting director. With Dan Ashworth now the only candidate in the running an approach to Newcastle United for their sporting director could be imminent.

A move for the experienced 52-year-old, who has held football executive roles at West Brom, Brighton and Newcastle, as well as the Football Association, would lead to a new structure for football operations at United, with John Murtough's role likely to change if he remains at the club.

But time is of the