Sir Jim Ratcliffe met Erik ten Hag and Manchester United players on a visit to the club’s Carrington training ground this week as the billionaire and his team get down to work.

Ineos owner Ratcliffe saw his £1.3billion investment in a 25 per cent stake and control of United’s football operations confirmed on Christmas Eve.

On Thursday, the 71-year-old and Ineos director of sport Sir Dave Brailsford paid a visit to Carrington.

They were pictured meeting manager Ten Hag as well as men’s team striker Rasmus Hojlund and women’s team players Millie Turner, Katie Zelem and Aoife Mannion.

Ratcliffe and Brailsford also met women’s team manager Marc Skinner, plus members of the club’s academy sides and performance staff during their visit.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe (left) and Sir Dave Brailsford (right) chat to Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag during their tour of the club’s Carrington training complex on Thursday

Ratcliffe, who has taken charge of United’s football operations after a £1.3billion investment, shakes hands with Ten Hag in the staff restaurant at Carrington

Brailsford and Ratcliffe met a number of first-team players, including striker Rasmus Hojlund

Ratcliffe speaks to women’s team platers Katie Zelem and Millie Turner at Carrington

Aoife Mannion was another member of the women’s squad to meet the Ineos bosses

They also went to Old Trafford for meetings with the wider club workforce and held an all-staff meeting as they get down to business at United.

The £1.3bn deal is still subject to approval by the Premier League, a process which could take a few more weeks, but United said in the interim ‘the Ineos team are meeting people from across the club to understand the performance challenge and how they help return United to the top of English, European and world football.’

As revealed by Mail Sport on Thursday, Ratcliffe and Brailsford issued a rallying cry to United’s management and staff by urging them to work together to restore former glories.

They are understood to have relayed the same message during a series of meetings with staff this week, making it clear United’s on-field performance in recent years have been unacceptable.

Their aim is to restore United to the high standards and success seen during Sir Alex Ferguson’s era.

Mail Sport was told Brailsford did most of the talking during introductory meetings with United staff, but Ratcliffe was very visible.

Ten Hag, who is under pressure to turn around a highly disappointing season so far, attended at least one of the meetings as well as having a private audience with Ratcliffe.

Ratcliffe meets long-serving receptionist Kath Phipps during his visit on Thursday

The Ineos owner and sports director watched United train during their Carrington visit

The new investors have yet to address the players formally as a group and consider the dressing room to be Ten Hag’s domain.

This week’s priority was to meet and provide reassurances to the club’s non-playing staff.

Brailsford is understood to have repeatedly refereed to addressing what he termed as United’s ‘performance challenge’, a diplomatic way of describing their poor results this season.

Ten Hag’s side have crashed out of Europe following a disastrous Champions League group campaign and their Carabao Cup defence ended in the fourth round.

In the Premier League, they sit eighth, some nine points shy of the top four and 14 adrift of leaders Liverpool, having already lost nine league games, winning just 10.

The club’s new football chiefs made it clear that recent performances have been unacceptable

Brailsford was seen sitting alongside Sir Alex Ferguson at the City Ground as United lost 2-1 to Nottingham Forest in their last match

At his press conference on Thursday ahead of United’s FA Cup third round tie at Wigan Athletic on Monday, Ten Hag revealed he held ‘positive’ talks with Ratcliffe that lasted several hours.

‘It was very positive, I have to say,’ said Ten Hag. ‘We had a long meeting, so many hours we sit together.

‘On many issues we were on the same page, it was very positive from both sides. I can say that it was a very constructive meeting and we’re looking forward to working with each other.

‘I think it’s very shortly (that Ineos take over football operations) and also we have to let it settle down. They’re just coming in and introducing themselves.

‘They have good ideas. We have to see what we can integrate, in togetherness we will work, but after one day you can’t tell that.

‘They have given me a few (what their ideas are). We have had our debates about strategies and I think we will come together.’