City have confirmed Berrada’s exit in a surprising switch across the Manchester border to replace Richard Arnold at Old Trafford.
A statement read: “Manchester City Football Club can confirm that Omar Berrada has resigned from his role as chief football operations officer at City Football Group.
“The club understands his decision to look for a new challenge, and he leaves with our thanks and best wishes.”
The 46-year-old will be the first major appointment since United announced that Ratcliffe had agreed a £1.3billion deal for a 29 per cent stake in the club.
INEOS have inherited total control of football operations and reportedly received endorsement from the Glazer family after identifying Berrada as their top CEO target.
According to BBC Sport, Berrada is expected to get to work at Old Trafford in the summer, when Ratcliffe and INEOS will oversee their first transfer window after the Premier League ratify the deal next month.
After landing at the Etihad Stadium from Barcelona in 2011, he was the commercial director for City Football Marketing before becoming the club’s chief operating officer in 2016.
During his stint as COO, Berrada was filmed discussing his job and what three traits he believed made a leader.
“In my opinion, the top three qualities a leader should have is, number one, being able to articulate a very clear vision,” Berrada said.
“Number two, leading by example. I think a leader should be at the forefront of what the club is trying to achieve.
“And number three is the idea of being collaborative and creating a platform that allows everyone to express their views and share their ideas to make the team a lot stronger.”
United have lacked a chief executive with a proven track record on the sporting side and business side of football during the miserable decade since Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill’s 2013 departures.
But Berrada’s comments offer hope that those expertise will return to the United hierarchy under Ratcliffe and INEOS’ watch.
He added: “One of the biggest challenges and areas of focus that I face in my role as chief operating officer at Manchester City is the need to find the balance between the football side of the organisation and the business side.
“In many ways, they operate in two different worlds. But the reality is you need to bridge that gap to operate as a unit.”
