Man Utd slammed for ‘completely unnecessary’ decision as Amorim ‘blocks’ Aston Villa transfer
Journalist David Ornstein thinks the decision by INEOS to potentially slash the Man Utd Disabled Supporters Association (MUDSA) budget is “completely unnecessary”.
It was revealed in October that the Red Devils had made the decision to end ‘a multi-million pound annual commitment’ to Sir Alex Ferguson in their latest cost-cutting measure.
The Scot won 38 trophies at Man Utd during a managerial reign spanning nearly 27 years, including 13 Premier League titles and two European Cups.
INEOS and Sir Jim Ratcliffe are working to put the club on a more sustainable financial footing and have instigated a number of cost-saving measures, including a redundancy programme which cut 250 jobs from headcount across all departments by the end of August.
And the Daily Mail journalist Mike Keegan reported earlier this week that Man Utd are ‘considering cutting the budget they hand to their disabled supporters’ association in half.’
Reacting to the news, The Athletic journalist Ornstein said on the Sky Sports’ Back Pages Podcast: “Terrible optics, unfortunately, with this story. No decision has been made, as Mike points out in the story, so they might not go through with it.
“But the fact they’re considering it doesn’t reflect well. It’s not going to play well toward the public, as it may do with investors. I think everything’s on the table – No stone being left unturned.
“Sir Alex Ferguson’s lost his ambassadorial role at £2 million per year. I mean, this feels like peanuts. The amount Manchester United have spent on transfers that haven’t worked out, on contracts, on staff, managerial severance, it feels completely unnecessary.
“But times are tough financially at Old Trafford, and they’re looking at every sort of avenue. So this feels bizarre. And it’s one that they didn’t need publicly, but perhaps they feel privately it’s something they need to consider.”
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New Man Utd boss Ruben Amorim is expected to ‘block’ Harry Amass from leaving Old Trafford to join Premier League rivals Aston Villa.
Football Insider claim that there have been ‘concerns’ that left-back Amass – who is yet to make his first-team debut – ‘could find his path into the starting XI blocked with both Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazraoui starting at left-back this season’.
It is understood that Man Utd ‘view Amass as a key player for the future’ but Aston Villa ‘feel they can offer him a clearer pathway into their first-team, with their ambitious view for the future.’
Football Insider adds:
‘Unai Emery’s side have put emphasis on developing young talent as seen with the likes of Morgan Rogers this season, and the left-back is viewed as a potential future star.
‘However, United’s vision for his future has him in high regard at Old Trafford and the arrival of Amorim is said to have boosted his first-team chances.
‘The Portuguese boss plays wing-backs in his system, and there is a belief that Amass is more suited to the role than the makeshift options used so far this season.
‘His emergence from the academy has built plenty of hype and expectation over his future, and United don’t want to see him leave the club any time soon.’
