Alan Shearer has hit out at Sir Jim Ratcliffe's 'chaotic' ownership of Manchester United following a turbulent start to the season.

British billionaire and boyhood United fan Ratcliffe, 72, completed his 25 per cent purchase of the club in February, with the Glazer family subsequently handing him control of football operations.

However, it has been a difficult first year in charge for Ratcliffe and his Ineos group as United have undergone a trying time on and off the pitch.

Back in the summer, the Red Devils handed Erik ten Hag a new contract despite significant speculation over his future - and gave him more than £200million to spend in the transfer market - before they then sacked him in October, shelling out £15m in compensation.

Ratcliffe also prized Dan Ashworth away from Newcastle as sporting director before he made the decision to dispense with his services last week after only a few months in the role.

The 72-year-old has similarly made a string of unpopular decisions, such as a mid-season move to raise matchday ticket prices to £66 per game - with no concessions for children or pensioners - while more than 250 club staff have been made redundant.

Despite all the change, the Red Devils are languishing in 13th in the Premier League and they narrowly beat Czech minnows Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League on Thursday.

And, ahead of Sunday's Manchester derby against arch-rivals City, Betfair ambassador Shearer insisted that Ratcliffe is yet to positively impact the club.

'That’s (chaotic) the right word,' he exclusively told Mail Sport, speaking on behalf of Betfair.

'It looks as if its gone from a really bad situation to everyone thinking "Ratcliffe is in there now" (everything will be fine).

'But ever since he walked in the door, whether it be putting ticket prices up, giving Erik ten Hag a new deal or giving him millions to spend on players and then sacking him and giving him compensation.

'Or whether it be paying £3m for Dan Ashworth after waiting for him on gardening leave (and then sacking him), it seems as if it has gone from one bad stage to another.'

Ruben Amorim was subsequently appointed as Ten Hag's replacement in November after United paid Sporting Lisbon £10.6m to hire the highly-rated coach and his staff.

However, the Portuguese is still adapting to life at Old Trafford having lost two of his four Premier League games in charge.

And Shearer insisted that Amorim's first month at the club would have been eye-opening for the 39-year-old.

'The most important thing is results on the pitch and that isn’t getting any better anytime soon,' he added.

'Because Ruben Amorim must have walked in and thought "there's been £600m spent on this squad and this is what I’ve got, this is the best he (Ratcliffe) can offer me". 

'So yeah, it’ll take time for him to get it right no doubt and I’m sure his eyes have been opened wide since he walked in there.'

Don’t miss Alan Shearer vs Rachael Blackmore in Betfair’s Christmas Quizzing… Only Bettor, streamed live on Friday, 20th December.