Sir Jim Ratcliffe ‘has Man Utd workers spy’ as they worry ‘axe hanging over head on a regular basis’
There is a ‘growing culture of fear’ among staff at Manchester United, reports say – one source even reported that some memebers of the workforce are worried about a spy
Some Manchester United staff are concerned there is a sneaky James Bond figure spying for boss Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
There is a “growing culture of fear” among staff as Ratcliffe continues to bring huge changes to the club including cutting costs. The Ineos boss owns just under 29% of the Red Devils and announced last August that 250 people would be made redundant.
Workers are said to have made sure they keep shtum around one particular person as they reckon they are a spy for Ratcliffe and his right-hand man Sir Dave Brailsford.
Staff low down and up to the top have all been up for the chop at the Premier League club, with sporting director Dan Ashworth leaving after just five months in the role in December.
One source is claimed to have told The Telegraph that staff feel like they have an “axe” hanging over their heads. “You’re just waiting for it to drop,” they added.
Further redundancies are expected on Monday next week with a possible 200 more jobs potentially being scrapped.
Ratcliffe has told fanzine United We Stand that he’s prepared to make unpopular decisions for the sake of bringing the glory days back to Old Trafford. “If you shy away from the difficult decisions then nothing much is going to change,” he warned.
This week, United co-owner Avram Glazer has insisted that United will not be sold.
Glazer was asked about the future of United on the day the club published their quarterly accounts and the £14.5million cost of getting rid of manager Erik ten Hag, Ashworth and other members of football staff was revealed.
The Glazer family remain majority owners of the Premier League side.
Asked by Sky Sports in Miami whether he would sell the club, Glazer gave an emphatic one-word answer: “No.”
The quarterly accounts showed that United’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBIDTA) were £70.5m for the second quarter, but player trading and interest costs meant they ended up recording a £27.7m loss.
Total revenue was down 12% year on year to £198.7m, with net finance costs up from £300,000 to £37.6m on the prior year quarter due to an “unfavourable swing” in foreign exchange rates on unhedged US dollars borrowings.
The 1958 fan group said the second quarter figures made for “grim reading” as they prepared to protest before the home fixture with Arsenal on March 9.
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