Richard Arnold ended a Manchester United problem with simple gesture Ed Woodward never made

Manchester United officially announced in January that Richard Arnold had been appointed as the club's CEO. Arnold was replacing the outgoing Ed Woodward, who held his position at Old Trafford for just under a decade.

Woodward was deeply unpopular among supporters and his departure was universally celebrated by fans. United have form for promoting from within the 'organisation' and Arnold, who previously held the position of group managing director, was chosen to succeed him.

Arnold and Woodward are known to be friends, the pair both graduated from Bristol University and they share the same background in finance. It seemed like United had appointed yet another Woodward. Arnold had to prove he was different to his predecessor, but he was immediately fighting a losing battle considering his history. Arnold was losing that battle until this weekend (he may well still be, but by a smaller margin).

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There had been positive noise from Arnold's first few months in charge. It's understood Arnold was aware of Woodward's mistakes and that he was laying the foundations for change, which included giving more power to football director John Murtough.

United have committed an extensive catalogue of errors in the transfer market over the last decade and Woodward is responsible for a large portion of those calamitous decisions. Woodward was hands-on and involved with transfers, but Arnold had the self-awareness to realise he wasn't qualified in that area. Murtough now has responsibility for transfers and Arnold deserves credit for that decision, though the jury is still out on United's inaugural football director.

Arnold said all the right things on a