Sir Jim Ratcliffe's ambitious plan proves Man Utd owners haven't read the room

Manchester United proprietor Sir Jim Ratcliffe has enactment guardant a 'Wembley of the North' program for Old Trafford conscionable months aft taking a involvement successful the Premier League club

Can you ideate the effect Sir Jim Ratcliffe would get if helium rocked up astatine the Etihad to inquire Sheikh Mansour to springiness him Pep Guardiola?

It would astir apt beryllium a akin reply to the 1 John W Henry would travel up with if helium took a telephone from 1 of the Glazer household suggesting that Mo Salah would look amended successful a antithetic shadiness of red. These are brainsick thoughts, of course.

But I thought I’d enactment them retired determination due to the fact that aft speechmaking that Manchester United are superior astir asking the British tax-payer for wealth to turn Old Trafford into a 100,000-capacity ‘Wembley of the North,’ it’s evident that silly play is here. The proposition that a shot nine that generates yearly revenues of £700million should beryllium fixed a authorities hand-out, isn’t conscionable madness. It’s besides offensive.

Sir Jim lives successful Monaco portion the Glazers are based successful Florida. Perhaps they haven’t seen that the authorities has conscionable scrapped the Winter Fuel Allowance for OAPs due to the fact that the state is skint.

Or possibly the reasoning down their ‘brainwave’ is that if there’s already a £22million achromatic spread successful the UK’s finances past what’s different fewer billion? United’s co-owners person not work the room.

There would beryllium uproar passim the state if United are fixed a azygous penny, euro oregon cent of nationalist wealth to lick a occupation that was created by the greed of the Glazers. They person built up debts of £1billion since their leveraged buy-out successful 2005, each the portion fleecing the nine for millions successful dividend pay-outs and presiding implicit much than a decennary of comparative nonaccomplishment connected the pitch.

They trousered different £1.27billion past Christmas erstwhile Ratcliffe took a 27.7percent involvement successful the club. Sir Jim is Britain’s richest man, with a nett worthy of much than £16billion. The Glazers are worthy astir £4billion.

If they don’t privation to wage up front, there’s ever a mortgage. What should beryllium disconnected the array is the anticipation of dipping into the nationalist purse - particularly erstwhile truthful galore radical are erstwhile again being near with a prime of eating oregon heating.

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‌This ‘Wembley of the North’ soundbite is thing much than a selling gimmick. Perhaps the northbound does request a nationalist stadium - but wherefore should it beryllium Old Trafford? Wembley belongs to the FA, not a nine successful London.

United fans similar to telephone Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium ‘the Council House.’ It’s expected to beryllium an insult but it’s thing much than an effort to poorness shame the neighbours.‌

City wage an yearly dividend to the section assembly for occupying the stadium built for the 2002 Commonwealth Games. And their owners person ploughed a luck successful processing an country of eastbound Manchester that was 1 of the astir deprived parts of the country. By contrast, the Glazers person not invested a azygous cent successful the section area. They haven’t adjacent been consenting to support Old Trafford acceptable for purpose.

We person each seen the footage of United’s leaking roof. The show of fans who person paid premium prices for tickets moving for screen each clip it rains is simply a damning indictment of their ownership.

At a clip wherever determination is simply a immense statement astir however overmuch shot nine owners tin put successful clubs without breaking PSR rules, surely a authorities assistance would beryllium thing akin to authorities sponsorship? It would surely springiness United an unfair advantage.

It was lone 4 years agone that Bury went retired of concern implicit an unpaid £4.2million loan. This was a nine situated conscionable 15 miles from Old Trafford, that had survived for 125 years successful the Football League and who had won the FA Cup earlier some Manchester clubs, Liverpool, Arsenal, Spurs and Chelsea.

Where was the appetite to manus implicit a chunk of payer currency to support them afloat?