Ed Woodward
As Old Trafford geared up for the biggest game in English football, Manchester United fans protested against the club’s CEO, Ed Woodward – calling for him to be sacked.
A plane was even flown over the stadium with a banner reading “Ed still failing – Woodward Out!”
Fans also carried damning banners with messages calling for Woodward’s sacking in the build-up to the Liverpool game.
United’s owners, the Glazer family, are also the subjects of constant enmity from large portions of the club’s fans.
Some banners from outside the stadium bore a message demanding that they sell the club, as well as calling for Woodward’s head.
One of the banners claimed that the Glazers have “stolen over a billion Pounds sterling from United” – a claim often mooted by anti-Glazer fans in relation to the running of the club as a business, with the American family profiting.
The news comes as Woodward himself opened up on the structure of the club, also claiming that the Glazers are going nowhere anytime soon.
“Based on what I see, they’re in it for the long-term,” said United’s executive vice-chairman
“With regards to offers or asking prices, my understanding is that there have been no discussions for a price for the club or anything like that. Every conversation we have is based on the long-term.”
One of the main criticisms of the Glazers is the debt saddled on United by their leveraged £780 million buyout, which currently stands at £511 million.