Exiled Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho could allegedly be handed a lifeline to salvage his Red Devils career once Sir Jim Ratcliffe's 25% purchase is completed.
After engaging in a two-horse bidding war with Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani for several months, Ratcliffe is now closing in on buying a minority stake from the Glazer family.
There are still a few details to be ironed out before Ratcliffe's purchase is ratified by the Premier League, but there is hope that the 71-year-old will assume office in the coming weeks and potentially before Christmas.
Ratcliffe will oversee a significant overhaul of Man United's sporting structure upon his arrival, and major changes at boardroom level have already been announced, with CEO Richard Arnold stepping down from his role.
Director of football John Murtough is also said to be facing the axe as Ratcliffe's implements his blueprint on the 20-time English champions, and the Ineos chief will work alongside Sir Dave Brailsford, a performance director who already serves as director of sport for Nice.
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Given Brailsford's specialities in sports psychology, The Mirror claims that the former British Cycling performance director's arrival could help to save Sancho's Old Trafford career, which has appeared dead in the water for a couple of months.
The England international has been ostracised from the first-team group since publicly hitting out at head coach Erik ten Hag for omitting him from the squad for September's 3-1 defeat to Arsenal.
Ten Hag claimed that poor performances in training were behind Sancho's absence, but the attacker took to X - formerly known as Twitter - to refute his manager's accusations, labelling himself a "scapegoat".
Ever since Sancho's social media post, the former Borussia Dortmund man has seldom been seen or heard from, having been banned from first-team training and the facilities at Man United's Carrington complex.
With the 23-year-old refusing to apologise to Ten Hag, who also remains unwavering in his position, a January exit - which all parties agree is the best way forward - has appeared the most likely outcome for some time.
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Italian giants Juventus are said to be leading the race for Sancho and are reportedly preparing to open talks over a move, but his extortionate wages means that the Old Lady would only be open to a loan deal.
Saudi Arabian sides backed by the Public Investment Fund would have no problem satisfying Sancho's financial demands, but the ex-Manchester City youngster supposedly wants to remain in Europe and could unexpectedly be offered the chance to do so at Old Trafford.
As well as appointing Brailsford, Ratcliffe will also bring in therapist Steve Peters, who could aid in the former's efforts to turn Sancho's career around amid reports that Ratcliffe wants to focus on nurturing home-grown talent.
Prior to joining Man United in a £73m deal in 2021, Sancho amassed 50 goals and 64 assists in 137 matches for Dortmund, but he has just 12 goals and six assists to boast from 82 games for the Red Devils.
Sancho was again absent for Saturday's 1-0 defeat to Newcastle United at St James' Park, which bumped Ten Hag's side to seventh in the Premier League table after 14 games.
Ben Knapton
