So Marks & Spencer may again to prove to be Philip Green's undoing. The retail entrepreneur may possess the talents to turn a £65,000 investment in Jean Jeannie into £3 million, to achieve a £38 million profit from the £20 million purchase of Olympus Sports, and to inspire a remarkable turnaround at Bhs.

Yet the closest M&S is set to get to Green is the colour of its carrier bags.

At least so many in the City were suggesting this morning after the company ditched its chief executive, Roger Holmes, in favour of Stuart Rose, one of the best-respected names in retailing. Luc Vandevelde, who three weeks ago announced his intention to quit as M&S chairman, was hurried through the out door to be replaced, on an interim basis, by Paul Myners, the City veteran.

As Henk Potts, at Barclays Stockbrokers, said: "Stuart Rose is a heavyweight retailer and will have a clear strategy on how to turn the business around.

"Some shareholders may now think that their future prospects are best served by a new and reinvigorated management team."

What such investors overlook is that Mr Green has kept all but a pinch of his powder dry. His official action thus far amounts to a one paragraph statement on Thursday confirming a "possible offer". This alone has proved sufficient to force the retailer to appoint a new chief executive and chairman.

What can be expected after the publication of a full takeover proposal, which Mr Green has indicated is likely this week?

At first sight, M&S's appointments appear canny. The company's non-executive directors had been split about whether to appoint a City figure or a retail specialist to succeed Mr Vandevelde.

Ousting Mr Holmes gave them the option to do both.

In hiring Mr Rose, the company gained access to the trade expertise needed to repair M&S's operational fortunes. Through fully exploiting Mr Myners' skills and contacts book, M&S will maximise its grasp of the technicalities which Mr Green will likely employ in the bid battle.

Yet there must still be concerns that the board only stumbled across such a strategy after shareholder pressure dating back, in some cases, to long before Mr Green revealed his hand. Even when Mr Holmes, a former B&Q boss, was made chief executive two years ago investors questioned Mr Vandevelde's wisdom in backing a candidate with minimal experience of the clothes trade.

So while the M&S board may this weekend have regained investor confidence, it has yet to redeem itself.

Furthermore, for all Mr Rose's experience of defending Argos and Arcadia against bids, it must be remembered that, on both occasions, the takeovers succeeded, albeit perhaps at higher prices than would otherwise be achieved. When Argos was taken over by GUS, Mr Rose left for Booker, where he engineered a merger with Iceland, the frozen foods retailer.

His career is notable for its sales record at both corporate and shopfloor levels.

Mr Rose will force many concessions from Mr Green, but it is not yet certain that defeat will be among them