MANCHESTER UNITED staff have been informed about the club’s plans and Sir Jim Ratfcliffe’s ambitions by chief executive Omar Berrada, according to reports.
Berrada, who officially joined the club from Manchester City in June, is said to have addressed employees during a meeting at Old Trafford last week.
According to The Athletic, the meeting outlined the ambitious plans set out by new minority owner Ratcliffe and the new-look football hierarchy, including sporting director Dan Ashworth.
Dubbed as “Project 150”, the goals of the plan align with the 150th anniversary date of the club’s founding as Newton Heath in 1878, which then became known as Man Utd in 1902.
Berrada, reportedly speaking in an aspirational and bullish tone, outlined a plan for the Red Devils to win the Premier League by 2028.
That goal was also extended to the women’s team, though he admitted that on both counts it would take a lot of hard work.
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The plan was received by staff following the mass cuts made by new chiefs which saw employee numbers reduced by a quarter.
Some staff were said to be energised by the new desire to prioritise sporting achievement over commercial.
Others are understood to have been left feeling despondent and upset in the wake of the recent mass redundancies which saw many members of staff at the club for years depart.
Speaking after his 27.7 per cent investment into United was announced, Ratcliffe said: “It’s not a 10-year plan.
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“The fans would run out of patience if it was a 10-year plan. But it’s certainly a three-year plan to get there,” he said.
“To think that we’re going to be playing football as good as Manchester City played against Real Madrid last season by next year is not sensible.
“And if we give people false expectations, then they will get disappointed. So the key thing is our trajectory, so that people can see that we’re making progress.
“I think it’s the club’s 150-year anniversary in 2028… if our trajectory is leading to a very good place in that sort of timeframe then we’d be very happy with that.
“Because it’s not easy to turn Manchester United into the world’s best football team.
“The ultimate target for Manchester United — and it’s always going to be thus, really — is that we should be challenging for the Premier League and challenging for the Champions League.
“It’s one of the biggest clubs in the world.”
Work has already begun on a new 100,000-capacity stadium for the men’s team to be built adjacent to the current Old Trafford site, with further redevlopment for the surrounding area also forthcoming.
Erik ten Hag was kept on as the club’s coach despite less-than ideal results last season with an eighth placed league finish only papered over by an FA Cup triumph.
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Berrada and Ashworth backed that decision before the 3-0 demolition by Liverpool, thought the team have struggled on the pitch in the early part of the season.
Tottenham, Porto and Aston Villa represent a tough run of upcoming games before the next international break.
What we know about the ‘new’ Old Trafford
MANCHESTER UNITED plan to build a new stadium rather than redevelop Old Trafford.
The decision was made after a number of fact-finding missions to other stadiums including the Bernabeu and Nou Camp.
The cost of the project is expected to be a staggering £2billion.
A capacity of 100,000 is expected.
It is felt that a club of United’s standing should have a new state-of-the-art facility.
The new stadium will be built on land adjacent to the Red Devils’ current home.
United are looking to not only build a stadium but regenerate the area of Trafford where the ground will stand.
There had been plans to KEEP Old Trafford rather than demolish it, and use it as a scaled down second venue.
However, it’s looking increasing likely that it will in fact be entirely demolished.
The club consulted with 30,000 fans about what to do and believe there is roughly a 50-50 split on staying or moving.
The club have appointed the architects Foster + Partners to come up with a “masterplan”. The company were behind Wembley Stadium.
Old Trafford has been United’s home since 1910.
The target is for completion by 2030.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
