Manchester United are finally making decisions that should have been made years ago

The winds of change are swirling around Old Trafford and depending on which way you're facing there is the sense that either revolution is in the air, or chaos is taking hold once again.

On Thursday night the Manchester United players emerged onto the pitch with the whiff of cordite drifting into the stadium, from the flares being held aloft by protesting supporters in the Munich Tunnel. Those fans are voicing their anger at 17 years of mismanagement by the absent Glazer family and the ultimate aim is a change in ownership, but at ground level in Manchester, there is a sense of a club belatedly trying to get its house in order.

The departures of chief scout Jim Lawlor and head of global scouting Marcel Bout have been followed by the resignation of the director of football negotiations Matt Judge. That was a title given to Judge just over a year ago but the fact he is leaving without being replaced on the eve of a transfer window suggests his role is being phased out.

READ MORE: United to make transfer window changes after Matt Judge resignation

Since Richard Arnold replaced Ed Woodward at the start of February there has been a restructuring of the entire business, of which these are the most high-profile changes. United has been too comfortable a club for far too long and at least there is now some attempt to do something about it.

The changes have to signal a long-term approach being taken at Old Trafford, something that has been lacking in recent transfer windows. The most obvious signifier of change this summer is the appointment of Erik ten Hag but the football structure is being streamlined.

While there are no plans for an immediate like-for-like replacement for Judge, United sources say there is an 'ongoing