Jim Ratcliffe, new co-owner of Manchester United, explained on Wednesday that he wanted to “learn” from the recent success of Manchester City and Liverpool, the two “enemy” clubs in the northwest of England, with whom he hopes to compete. here “three years”.

“We have a lot to learn from our noisy neighbor and the other neighbor” even if, “in the end, they are our enemies,” Mr. Ratcliffe declared to the press, the day after his official entry into the capital of the club.

“I would love nothing more than to knock them both off their pedestals,” said the British billionaire, borrowing formulas once used by Alex Ferguson, iconic coach from 1986 to 2013.

The Scot said his biggest challenge had been “knocking Liverpool off their pedestal” and went on to describe Manchester City as “noisy neighbors” shortly after their takeover by Emirati owners in 2008.

The most successful club in the English championship, Manchester United has experienced a sporting decline since Ferguson’s retirement. Conversely, City have made the Premier League their almost exclusive property (five titles over the last six seasons), with Liverpool the main threat.

“They have been in a good position for a while and we have things to learn from them. They have great organizations, great people inside, a quality, motivated, elite work environment,” Ratcliffe described.

Manchester United have just stolen Omar Berrada from City to become club president and convinced Dan Ashworth to leave Newcastle to become the future sporting director.

In football, “changes don’t happen overnight,” warned Ratcliffe, asking supporters for “patience.”

“This is not a ten-year plan,” he nevertheless clarified. “Supporters would get impatient if it was a ten-year plan. But it’s definitely a three-year plan to get there.”

The 71-year-old entrepreneur, founder of the petrochemical group Ineos, owns 27.7% of the capital of Manchester United, according to information published Tuesday by the club. The agreement with the Glazer family, majority shareholder, grants control of sporting affairs to Ratcliffe.