London24NEWS

Sir Jim Ratcliffe instructed what he should be taught when Man Utd face Fulham after ‘galling’ comment

Sir Jim Ratcliffe defended a ticket price rise at Old Trafford recently by claiming a ticket to watch Manchester United should not cost less than a Fulham one.

Well on Sunday evening he may be choking on those words. Not that he will have to pay for a ticket himself but if he goes along to his nearby football ground to watch the match at Craven Cottage, he will see a side playing a lot better than United.

The home fans at Fulham may still pay more than many do at Old Trafford but at least they’ve only watched their side lose twice there this season. And they’ve been watching a far more entertaining team as well.

United supporters have had to witness six defeats on their own patch in the Premier League after last Sunday’s 3-1 loss to Brighton. The Seagulls, Bournemouth, Newcastle, Nottingham Forest, Tottenham and Liverpool have all rocked up there this term and turned the home side over. With ease.

Their worst home record since they were not called Manchester United or played at Old Trafford. The positive wins? A late hat-trick from Amad to see off doomed Southampton, a four-goal rout of a struggling Everton, a win over relegation fodder Leicester, a comeback win over travel sick Brentford and a late victory against Fulham.

The last time home fans at Old Trafford saw their side win a league game was December 1. So it will be at least two months as their next one is February 2 against Crystal Palace. And Ratcliffe has the audacity to tell punters they shouldn’t be paying less than fans at a ground in West London?

The cutbacks at Old Trafford are there for all to see on and off the pitch. Whatever the billionaire is going to do with the famous old ground – whether a rebuild or a new stadium – just letting it rot is inexcusable.

It is not just Ratcliffe and INEOS to blame. The team and stadium is crumbling because of decades of neglect by the Glazers.
Yet it is Ratcliffe coming out and telling supporters to cough up more money to watch a failing team while listening to away fans mocking them for their stadium falling down.

Maybe if he goes to watch his team play Fulham on Sunday evening he can look around the houses and flats by the ground to remind himself of the locals in that area. The average house prices on Stevenage Road in SW6 where Craven Cottage resides is £3.2m.

Now we know that the majority of Fulham fans come from working-class backgrounds, too. But maybe Ratcliffe should consider the average house price in the M16 area where Old Trafford resides is closer to £275,000.

Ratcliffe’s Fulham comparison was galling but at least their fans get some value for their money. United supporters are certainly not at the moment.

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Nottingham Forest are showing the Premier League that it is not all about playing football the same way.



Nuno Espirito Santo
Nuno Espirito Santo has Forest sitting pretty in the Premier League

And they’re showing you don’t have to be an all-out attacking and possession dominant side to entertain. Because watching the Tricky Trees has been fun this season as they find ways to win games with explosive, counter-attacking football.

They tweak and tinker with their game plan to get results and it has got their fans dreaming of something special this season – a return to the European Cup. Brian Clough famously won it twice as their manager and he would love to see his old side sticking it to the tactical snobs this season.

Football in this country has become too much of the same thing. So much so you had Southampton playing out from the back and playing their way back to the Championship.

Nuno Espirito Santo deserves huge credit for the job he’s doing at the City Ground. And cards on the table here, this writer predicted them to get relegated. They’re probably staying up!

ONSIDE

David Moyes. Back at Goodison and got the Blues fans smiling again with a great win against Tottenham.

OFFSIDE

Pep Guardiola and Manchester City. Blowing a two-goal lead in Europe? Wow