Philippa Kaur

MANCHESTER UNITED’s new £2billion stadium could see costs spiral out of control, experts have warned. The Red Devils unveiled ambitious plans for a stunning 100,000-seater arena on Tuesday. Industry insiders are not convinced Man Utd’s £2bn estimate will holdCredit: PAThe proposed new stadium features a huge canopy that will dominate the Manchester skylineCredit: PAThe new stadium will replace Old Trafford, which has been the Red Devils’ home since 1910. Ineos chief and club co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe put an ambitious five-year target on the build.It would see United move into their new ground for the 2030-31 campaign. But an industry insider told The Mail that United’s plans had been met with “industry-wide scepticism”.READ MORE ON MAN UTDThe stadium – designed by local architect Norman Foster- features a huge tent-like canopy in concept images released on Tuesday. Ratcliffe hopes the unusual look will help the stadium become a tourist attraction similar “to the Eiffel Tower.”However, he admitted on Monday that United could have gone BUST by the end of 2025 if it wasn’t for his injection of cash.While industry insiders are reportedly sceptical over the hefty £2billion price tag of the new stadium.Most read in FootballCheltenham Festival betting offers and free betsThe Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which opened in 2019, cost Spurs £1.1bn and was built before the spiralling costs of materials. And there has also been doubt cast over whether United can build the immense canopy over the stadium due to the current layout of the Stretford End.Inside Newcastle’s £3BILLION new stadium plans with St James’ Park project to rival Old TraffordRatcliffe remained upbeat that the club would be able to provide the vision on offer. He told the club’s website: “The brief to Norman Foster here was to build the world’s most iconic football stadium. “It had to be a stadium which was recognisable around the world.”The second part of the request was that it had to have a really intense atmosphere, and that the people in the stadium would be as close to the pitch as we possibly could achieve. Man Utd ratings vs Arsenal as De Ligt shows exactly why Red Devils signed him but Zirkzee is as frustrating as everIT was a performance that would have pleased Ruben Amorim but a 1-1 draw with Arsenal does little to paper over the cracks at Manchester United.On a day when the Old Trafford crowd protested the owners, the players stood up to show their remains life in a club that fans say is experiencing a “slow death”.There was a lack of clear-cut chances in the opening 45 minutes as both sides goalscoring troubles continued.A moment of magic was needed and Fernandes stepped up as he so often does.Arsenal’s wall was full of man mountains, but Fernandes found the power, dip and accuracy to beat David Raya with his free-kick – even if the wall was marched 11.2 yards back instead of the regulated ten.Mikel Arteta’s side came out swinging in the second-half with their makeshift No9 up top, and it took a brilliant effort from Declan Rice to level the scores.United were able to frustrate them and remain a threat on the counter but eventually had to settle for a point in a much-improved performance.Here is how SunSport’s Martin Blackburn rated the United performances.”So that means you’ve got relatively steep sides rather than flat sides. “This is the club’s ground. So we want to be winning matches at home and we want it to be a sort of fearsome atmosphere when the competing teams come in.”It really was about [designing] the best stadium in the world, the best stadium in Europe, better than the Bernabeu and the Nou Camp.” More