Erik ten Hag might be the poster boy of the new era at Manchester United, but he isn't the only crucial new appointment made by the club this summer.
United have appointed Andy O'Boyle as the club's inaugural deputy football director, after he vacated his role as the head of elite performance at the Premier League to support United football director John Murtough, who occupied the same role as O'Boyle when he joined the club in 2013.
O'Boyle arrives at the club with an enviable CV and has experience in a wide range of roles from different sectors of the football industry. “Andy has experience across all technical areas of football, from fitness and sports science to scouting and recruitment," Murtough said upon his official unveiling on Tuesday morning.
READ MORE: Manchester United confirm Andy O'Boyle as deputy football director
The former Liverpool coach will soon add a Uefa pro coaching licence to his repertoire this summer and is also working towards a doctorate, having already achieved a masters in sports science.
They are all appealing buzzwords to a fanbase which has been starved of success in recent years, but perhaps the biggest impact from O'Boyle's appointment is that it will allow Murtough to finally show what it is he can offer at first-team level.
It is understood O’Boyle’s arrival will free up around two-thirds of Murtough’s working week by removing plenty of distractions from his daily inbox and allow the football director to focus on the first-team and, most importantly, summer recruitment.
Murtough has been credited with helping with the initial success of United's Women side, though questions were raised about the direction of the side when Casey Stoney quit her role as manager a year ago. Marc Skinner led the side to fourth in the WSL this season, the third year in succession they have placed there.
Prior to being appointed the club's inaugural football director last year, he was also tasked with overseeing the overhaul of United's academy and recruitment department.
A key aspect of the rebuild was putting the right personnel in place around the academy, with the appointment of individuals who could not only continue the youth to uphold the club's famed youth set-up but bring in fresh ideas to innovate it as well.
Murtough brought Nick Cox into the club and backed his appointment as the head of the academy, taking over the role from club great Nicky Butt. That summer also saw Youth Cup winning manager Travis Binnion arrive at the club as the head of player development at U14-U16 level, before taking his latest role as U18 lead coach a year ago.
It was last summer that United moved to appoint Justin Cochrane too. The 40-year-old had offers from the Football League and was in the running for the England U21 job before being tempted to move to United to work as the head of first-team development.
The hope is that O'Boyle can be the next of those innovative additions to help revolutionise a club which has been stagnant for far too long.
Perhaps the biggest success of Murtough's reign so far, though, has been the success of the club's youth recruitment. It was he who chaperoned teenager Hannibal Mejbri at United's 2019 pre-season friendly with Kristiansund in Norway and played a key role in convincing him to sign for the club.
A year later, United scoured Spain for a trio of top talents with Alvaro Fernandez joining from Real Madrid, Marc Jurado from Barcelona, and Alejandro Garnacho from Atletico Madrid. Jurado and Garnacho both shone in the recent Youth Cup win over Nottingham Forest. Fernandez was named the club's U23 Player of the Year.
That same summer saw United sign top attacking talent Joe Hugill from Sunderland amid rival interest from Arsenal and Tottenham while Charlie McNeill rejoined the club from local rivals Man City. Both captures were evidence of United's rising stock in the youth game; both of the forwards played in the Youth Cup win.
O'Boyle's arrival should free up plenty more time for Murtough to focus on recruitment at first-team level this summer, and with it, there is now increased pressure on him to prove why he was the right man for the job.
United's latest appointment is another sign that the club is finally getting its act together. The next challenge is to prove that they really are.
