Water cascading down the stands and drenching the dressing room.
This decaying landmark must be demolished. Why NOT play at Wembley while Old Trafford is rebuilt?
THEATRE of Dreams? Theatre of Streams was more apt. There have been many dark days since the greedy Glazers stole the keys to Old Trafford with their debt-burdening takeover in 2005.
But with water cascading down the steps, pouring into the players’ tunnel and drenching the victorious Arsenal dressing room, Sunday was the darkest yet.
Manchester United — proud, iconic Manchester United — are an utter shambles on and off the field. The joke with seemingly never-ending punchlines.
Was this the nadir? Newcastle come to town tomorrow and, with showers expected ( no jokes please), few would bet against another damaging evening.
Damage assessors were due on site yesterday morning. Those present would have done well to point out that the body of evidence for damage at United stretches back 19 years from the events of Sunday. Others may joke it would be an idea to take a look at the home dressing room for signs of cracks, let alone that of the visitors.
On the leaks, club officials will point to biblical levels of rain and, yes, even for Manchester, this was no ordinary storm. After the heavens parted 10 minutes before the home side finally surrendered to their title- chasing visitors, 41mm fell from thunderous skies over the next two hours. That is more than the 29mm which dropped on this decaying landmark in the whole of last May. But there can be no excuse.
With the Arsenal fans singing the popular ditty ‘Old Trafford is falling down (Ten Hag is a f*****g clown)’, videos to emphasise that point flooded in.
Some pointed out that, at 55 metres, ‘ Old Trafford Falls’ was England’s fourth-highest waterfall. More damaging for the club, though, were the clips from in and around the players’ area.
It is hard not to wonder what the Premier League made of it all. This is the world’s elite competition. Within that room was hundreds of millions of pounds worth of talent. It is to be hoped the electricity was isolated.
Not that this is a new issue. Similar videos had prompted the creation of that song already.
Last November, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos’s 25 per cent stake still to be secured, Mail Sport took a trip down Sir Matt Busby Way on a non-matchday.
From the outside, decades of neglect were visible. A small team of workers were tending to the roof of the Sir Bobby Charlton Stand, source of so many leaks it may have felt like Whac-A-Mole.
On the cantilevers, white paint had disappeared to expose metal and rust. The back of the stand which yesterday welcomed Ratcliffe and Sir Keir Starmer looked like something out of a timewarp when viewed from the road, with its graffiti, corrugated iron and barbed wire.
There have been no extensions or major improvements at Old Trafford since the Glazers’ arrival. Let that sink in. The increased capacity to 75,000 — which has since shrunk — via the quadrants built in 2006 was signed off before the Americans took control.
Some have wondered about the role of former executives Ed Woodward and Richard Arnold in all this, and if the urgency of the situation was ever made clear to the owners. Regardless, it is now someone else’s problem after Ratcliffe and Ineos paid more than £1billion to buy into the club and promised an extra £245m investment in infrastructure.
This summer, a significant refurbishment will be carried out at Carrington, the club’s training ground, with the ‘marginal gains’ fingerprints of Ineos sporting director Sir Dave Brailsford all over the plans.
There are no fine margins around Old Trafford. Already, Ratcliffe and his team have recognised a demolition job is needed.
Such a project could cost north of £2bn. These are clearly savvy people. Lord Coe, the driver of London 2012, has been brought in to a taskforce, no doubt with the aim of unlocking public funding.
At a time of levelling-up, you imagine United will present a compelling case for a ‘Wembley of the North’ and a huge revamp of the surrounding area that may prove lucrative in the coming years. That is why Starmer, Prime Minister in waiting, was there to witness the deluge.
But there is a problem that originates in the south east of the United States. Some feel that spending taxpayers’ money to build a new Old Trafford would be the biggest political scandal since Watergate.
Their argument is powerful. United are still majority- owned by the Glazer family. The same Glazer family who have recently taken more than £1bn out of the club. The same Glazer family who have repeatedly drained dividends from a British institution. The same Glazer family who have neglected one of this country’s great sporting cathedrals to the extent that it is now a by-word for decay.
WHyshould the public purse right their wrongs? Even worse, if Joel, Avram and Co stick around, a 100,000- seat stadium in the midst of a regenerated, vibrant area would only put more value on what remains their asset.
For all the good it may do, such works may essentially make them richer, which is an incredibly bitter pill to swallow whether you are a red or blue in politics, or in football. Already fans of rival clubs have threatened to write to their MPs if such a scenario is close to getting off the ground.
There are less controversial areas in which Downing Street could help. The relaxing and expedition of planning is one. Partnerships on projects that could deliver a return for the taxpayer is another.
Should Ratcliffe and Ineos head down the route of building a new Old Trafford, the likelihood is that they would have to find somewhere else to play in the meantime. The surrounding area is vast but continuing to stage
games at United’s traditional home would pose a huge problem given access issues for both punters and builders.
If the issues are insurmountable, where could United go? Do not hold your breath on their noisy neighbours racing to help. Why should they?
Mail Sport’s Ian Ladyman raised the prospect of a switch to Wembley on the It’s All Kicking Off podcast. It is a solution not without problems but it is an option.
United could offer subsidised travel to those based in and around Manchester who want to keep their season tickets. Those who do not wish to travel could have their season tickets held until the new home is ready. To think United would struggle to fill the national stadium would be naive given their support across the south and beyond.
Such a move would no doubt be attractive to the FA given the significant boost in revenues it would attract, but it is understood no such conversations have taken place so far. There is also the north London precedent, with both Arsenal and Tottenham having done likewise.
Although the European Championship is planned for the UK and Ireland in 2028, and although Wembley would continue to host events such as the finals of the play- offs, FA Cup, Carabao Cup and rugby league Challenge Cup, officials would no doubt find a way to make it work.
From one shower to another. Whether Erik ten Hag remains in charge to oversee a rebuild on the playing side is one of a series of questions that needs an answer in the near future.
There is an element of the United hierarchy that would like to see the Dutchman given the opportunity to work under the proper structure that Ratcliffe and Co are attempting to implement.
THERE are concerns over the availability of a suitable replacement as well, though Thomas Tuchel is on the list as he prepares to leave Bayern Munich. A thumping under the arch by City in the FA Cup final, which would not be a shock, may force United’s hand.
Whoever is given the task will need time, patience and money. United’s matchgoing fanbase cannot be accused of turning on their managers, so the first two of those should be forthcoming. Whether they will get the third rests on the club’s ability to get players out of the door.
While injuries have taken a heavy toll (another area Ineos are seeking to address), a series of catastrophic transfer windows played their part in ensuring United’s starting XI to face Arsenal was one of the weakest in memory.
This has been an abominable season. How many of those who pulled on the red shirt on Sunday are players fans would deem fit to do so? There is a clip doing the rounds on social media of Antony’s reaction when he was asked to switch to left back. He puts his hand to his lips and mouths something before, apparently reluctantly, dropping back.
This is an unbalanced team and it is hard to see who would offer these players anywhere near the salaries many are stealing at Old Trafford.
Manchester United are a dog’s dinner. A lesson in how not to recruit. It may take five years to learn those lessons and correct those mistakes.
When United walk out to face Newcastle tomorrow they will do so to the strains of The Stone Roses’ classic This Is the One. Another Roses
classic, Waterfall, may well be more apt.