Sir Jim Ratcliffe suffers ultimate football humiliation… and this time not with Man Utd

SIR JIM RATCLIFFE has had a tumultuous twelvemonth operating successful football, though his latest humiliation does not travel from of Manchester United.

A twelvemonth agone this month, the British billionaire's company, Ineos, completed its woody to takeover 27.7 per cent involvement successful Manchester United.

Despite archetypal optimism astatine a determination distant from the much-maligned Glazer-ownership and power of the club, Ratcliffe has not made galore friends implicit the past 12 months.

Ineos chiefs bottled the determination to sack Erik 10 Hag pursuing the FA Cup last earlier yet putting the nine £21m retired of pouch to sack him and regenerate him with Ruben Amorim and his staff.

Ticket prices person skyrocketed pursuing the determination to region concession prices for each games for the remainder of the season, which besides followed the sacking of astir a 4th of each unit astatine the club.

And each of this has happened portion having their worst play successful Premier League history, underlined by the nine being successful the bottommost fractional of the array astatine Christmas for the archetypal clip successful history.

Other unwanted records for the Red Devils see United conceding a staggering 17 goals from acceptable pieces crossed the calendar twelvemonth of 2024.

A seventh location decision of the play against Crystal Palace saw them adjacent their worst location grounds since 1894 - erstwhile the nine formerly named arsenic Newton Heath was relegated from England's apical flight.

But Ratcliffe and Ineos person present deed an embarrassing bump successful their clip since taking implicit Ligue 1 broadside Nice.

Last night, Nice were KO'd from the Coupe de France by fourth-tier broadside Stade Briochin successful the Coupe de France.

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Nice were up done Tom Louchet successful the 54th minute, but came undone by a precocious brace from Hugo Boudin which prompted a transportation penetration arsenic jubilant fans celebrated the immense cupful upset.

The daze effect - described arsenic beyond his "wildest dreams" by the minnows coach, Guillaume Allanou - was the 2nd clip Nice person been knocked retired by a nine extracurricular of Ligue 1 since Ineos took implicit successful 2019.

The different juncture came successful 2022/23 against past third-tier nine Le Puy Foot, with the broadside relegated to the 4th tier astatine the extremity of the season.

The past clip Nice were knocked retired of the Coupe de France by a nine truthful debased successful the French league strategy was successful 1999, erstwhile they mislaid to sixth-tier nine AS Lyon-Duchère.

Prior to the Man Utd takeover quality past season, Nice had been looking similar they were successful a rubric contention against Paris Saint-Germain.

But they eventual fell to 5th and extracurricular of the Champions League places by the season's end, a presumption they presently reside successful now.

The French broadside person had 7 bosses successful the abstraction of six years, with their latest manager - Franck Haise - being appointed successful the summertime of 2024.

Ineos person besides been the taxable of instrumentality protests which took spot successful 2023, with nine skipper Dante telling L'Equipe: "I deliberation astatine immoderate constituent you person to beryllium wide successful what you’re saying.

"To support a project, possibly you request to talk little astir objectives and enactment successful soundlessness to make an situation of competitors.

"Because the anticipation is adjacent bigger, and past after, radical are frustrated."

Things person not been overmuch amended astatine Swiss club, Lausanne-Sport, wherever Ineos took implicit successful 2017.

Lausanne person been relegated doubly contempt investment, finishing bottommost of the Swiss Super League successful 2018 and successful 2022.

After returning to the apical formation they finished eighth successful the regular play earlier securing their spot successful the league by coming 4th successful the relegation play-off league.

The club's prospects person been brighter this twelvemonth arsenic beryllium 5th spot and lone six points disconnected league leaders Lugano.

Ratcliffe and his lieutenants astatine Man Utd person said it volition instrumentality clip earlier the nine tin instrumentality to its aged heights.

Yesterday it was reported however Ineos chiefs had outlined the caller "Mission 21" and "Mission 1" nether "Project 150" to get the nine winning some the men's and women's titles by 2028.

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