Olympic gold medallist Ben Ainslie has expressed his confidence in Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos transforming the prospects of Manchester United, though he emphasises it won't be a quick fix.
Having worked closely with Ineos through their America's Cup campaign, which notably saw a British team reach the finals for the first time in six decades, Ainslie is convinced that Ratcliffe's approach will pay dividends for United. "It's a matter of time, and it's not going to happen overnight," he said during an interview with Sky Sports News.
"We know football at the highest level as the Premier League is, it's incredibly tough to be successful, but knowing Jim, knowing people like [Sir] Dave Brailsford, the rest of the team that they've now bought in there to manage the team and take things forwards, they'll get there. I would say, you know, give them time.
"It's not not something that's going to flick a switch and happen overnight, but it will happen." Brailsford is a member of United's football board and is among the power brokers who will make a decision on Erik ten Hag.
The United manager is under pressure after a poor start to the season and senior club figures convened in London for a scheduled meeting on Tuesday at which the Dutchman's position as discussed. As things stand, United are yet to clarify Ten Hag's future.
The challenge of taking the America's Cup from New Zealand is set to begin this weekend, and for Ainslie, stealing victory in this tournament would eclipse his Olympic accolade of four consecutive gold medals.
"America's Cup started 173 years ago and Britain's never won it so it's a big moment for British Sailing," he said, spelling out the gravity of the situation. The combination of Britain's rich maritime history and having never clinched the America's Cup fuels the motivation for Ainslie and his team.
"Absolutely, it would eclipse anything that I've been fortunate to experience at Olympic level because to have success with a team, far eclipses anything that you can achieve as an individual," Ainslie concluded.