Ryan Giggs has admitted that Manchester United “fell behind” rivals clubs in one area and he is ready to support a key decision from Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos have made sweeping changes at Old Trafford since the 72-year-old British billionaire became co-owner of Manchester United in 2023.
United fans have seen a shake-up to the Red Devils’ club hierarchy since Ratcliffe’s Ineos team took control of football operations at the Premier League club.
Ratcliffe has also made his feelings clear on bringing United’s finances under control and hasn’t been afraid to implement major cost-cutting measures at the Red Devils.
United redundancies have occurred under Ineos and Ratcliffe has also been criticised for axing lunch meals for the Red Devils’ staff amid the cuts at Old Trafford.
Ratcliffe’s other measures included axing Sir Alex Ferguson from his ambassadorial United contract at the end of the 2024-25 Premier League campaign.
The Ineos regime have also received backlash from United fans over a rise in ticket prices for matchday fixtures in the current season amid the club’s mixed campaign.
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Photo by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images
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Ryan Giggs’ mixed feelings on Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos’ plans for a new stadium and Old Trafford’s future
Manchester United revealed plans to push ahead with a new stadium and Red Devils fans have had mixed feelings on the design for Old Trafford’s successor.
The new stadium is expected to cost United an eye-watering £2bn and is anticipated to boast a 100,000-seat capacity, which is targeted for completion by 2030.
Ineos chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe had been keen to build a ‘Wembley of the North’ for United after his minority stake purchase in the Premier League club in 2023.
Speaking at a recent ‘Class of ‘92’-backed charity event, Ryan Giggs admitted that the hope would be for United to keep Old Trafford rather than build a new stadium.
However, the 51-year-old United legend claimed that he would be willing to support a successor to Old Trafford if it were not possible to revamp United’s iconic stadium.
“I think everyone, if it was possible, would like to keep the stadium as it is, like what they’ve done at Nou Camp, what they’ve done at the Bernabeu,” he said, as per The Daily Mirror.
“If that isn’t possible, then the next best thing is a new stadium. United has always been at the forefront of technology, about having the best facilities, the best stadium, the best fan experience and we fell behind with that.
“On the pitch, off the pitch, we fell behind with a lot of things. If it’s going to be a new stadium, it needs to be the best and, hopefully, we get the best players on the pitch as well.”
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What Sir Jim Ratcliffe thinks of new Man Utd stadium plans and a replacement for Old Trafford
Speaking to MUTV in March, Ineos boss Ratcliffe insisted that United’s new stadium would offer the Premier League club “one of the world’s best training facilities.”
“I just think it will return to greatness. It will be a great football club again,” he said earlier this month, as per Manchester United’s official website.
“Carrington, I think, will be best in class. So, we’ll have one of the world’s best training facilities.
“Again, Foster has done a great job at Carrington, so I mean it’s quite sizeable. It’s £50 million we’ve spent on that building.
“So, it’ll be a really impressive training facility that we have. There’ll be no player at Manchester United who can ever say, well, you know, it’s not as good as somewhere else.
“It’ll be as good as anywhere. The stadium needs to be the same.”
United are currently 13th in the Premier League table and Ruben Amorim’s men will return to action on 1st April against Nottingham Forest after the March break.