Ed Woodward is “more confident than ever” that Manchester United are on the “right track” having brought in the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo over the summer.

The Old Trafford giants, who finished as Premier League and Europa League runners-up last season, have followed up the big-money acquisitions of Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane by signing a club great.

Ronaldo completed his blockbuster switch from Juventus on deadline day, bolstering a side that is looking to win their first trophy since 2017 and currently sit top of the Premier League.

Woodward, who will leave his post at the end of the year, said United’s “optimism about on-field prospects goes hand-in-hand with the confidence in our robust operational business model”.

The executive vice-chairman’s comments come as the club revealed their financial results for the year ending June 30, 2021.

In their previous annual results, the Old Trafford giants’ revenue dropped from £627.1m to £509m – figures that incorporated just a three-month hit of the coronavirus pandemic.

The economic ramifications continued in the year ending June 30, with United’s revenue dropping down to £494.1m as they recorded an operating loss of £36.9m last season.

Pushed further on Ronaldo, Arnold said: “All of the players that are signed are signed exclusively for their ability to deliver on the pitch.

“My job in running the commercial operations of the club is to generate as much income as possible, to sustain a virtuous cycle – and that relates to us as a club, us as a team and every single one of our players, both individually and collectively in terms of the work we do with them.

“So whilst every signing we make – and again some are better known than others – have a positive effect on fan engagement and a positive effect on the activity we do, that’s very much putting fuel into a well-run engine.

“We’re well renowned in the sports industry for doing a good job of maximising the commercial opportunities that come to us.

“But our focus is on signing players to make sure that they deliver on the pitch and then maximising the opportunity afterwards.

“To single out any one player in terms of their impact, particularly this early after a signing, would be wrong.”