Manchester United owners the Glazer family have reiterated their stance on the club not being for sale.

The Qatar Royal Family have been linked with a £1.6billion bid to buy Man United but the Glazers have insisted that they won't sell.

A statement read: "The board notes recent press speculation regarding a possible bid for Manchester United"

"The owners remain fully committed to their long-term ownership of the club."

"No discussions have taken place, Manchester United is not for sale and the owners will not entertain any offers."

The statement was released alongside United's second quarter financial results, which showed that in 12 months the clubs debt has shrunk from £512.5m to £489.4m from the end of 2010. Man United are also on target to become the first club to reach the £100m mark for commercial revenue.

According to figures released today, the Glazer family’s debts have hit a massive £1.1 billion.

Tomorrow night a BBC Panaroma investigation will be aired and will reveal exactly how much debt the Glazer family are in. The BBC has been investigating the finances along with investment analyst Andy Green and the Guardian.

The amount of debt the Glazer family’s in is astonishing. To sum up the figures as basically as I can- the Glazers have £2.344bn in assets but they £1.175 worth of debt, which leaves net assets of £1.169bn.

Not only are United in over £700 million in debt but their other businesses are also struggling financially. Their First Allied shopping mall business has £388 million worth of debt on mortgages and is barely making any profit. NFL football team the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who have recently had their worst season in 20 years and they owe over £66 million.

There are some United fans that say- “who cares? As long as the club are winning trophies, we’ll be fine”. The Financial Fair Play regulations are set to take full effect by the 2014-15. This would mean that the clubs who have more debt than their annual turnover will not be allowed to participate in UEFA competitions. If United are unable to participate in those competitions, that will impact heavily on the club.

What will happen if United are forced to sell the big name players such as Wayne Rooney? What if Sir Alex Ferguson is unable to buy the players that he wants? We’re seeing that already! What if United fail to win trophies? There are loads of what if’s, which I don’t want to see happen.

It possible for one of the biggest and most famous football clubs in the world to crumble into financial turmoil, these issues have to be dealt with and the sooner, the better.

Something has to be done; the Glazers can’t be allowed to continue to take millions and millions of pounds of United each year.

For an indepth account of the Glazers debts, head over to andersred blog- http://andersred.blogspot.com/

Today the Manchester United released a short statement, which has reiterated that the club is not for sale. Not only that but United Chief Executive David Gill has said that he believes the Green and Gold army is only a ‘minority’ who will ‘go away’.

The board statement read:

"The board noted recent press speculation regarding a possible bid for Manchester United. The owners remain fully committed to their long-term ownership of the club. Manchester United is not for sale and the owners will not entertain any offers."

Recent press speculation? This speculation has been going on for months and the board will have known that. As for the Glazers not even entertaining any offers then that’s rubbish, everyone has their price.

This isn’t actually news; they’ve said it before and they will probably say it again.

If the club is sold, there wouldn’t be a quick fix but hopefully the new owners (whether it’s the Red Knights or not) wouldn’t bleed the club dry by taking millions of pounds out for their own benefit.

Gill has had his say on the Green and Gold campaign:

“The green and gold campaign and the momentum behind that can get a bit tiring.”

“We understand people's desire to protest and I think it is a minority. It's a visible minority in the stadium.”

From what I’ve seen and read, it’s not a minority. Even Bayern Munich fans had a banner saying “Love United, Hate Glazer” when United played them in the Champions League.

“I think that [the green and gold] minority will go away. A lot of people understand what it means but a lot of them don't.”

A lot of people didn’t understand the reasons behind the campaign and he’s right, some still don’t but people are learning and becoming more aware of the situation.

This is the same campaign that has got a lot of media attention and will be part of the BBC Panorama investigation into Man United’s finances, which will air next month. Is it really just going to go away? No it isn’t, it’s going to continue to grow as more and more fans realise what’s going on at the club.

Fans aren’t stupid and only want what’s best for the club, maybe the board should listen to what the supporters want.

Every Manchester United fan should know what the Green and Gold campaign is about by now, if you don’t where have you been?

Ben Foster has only just joined Birmingham City from Man United but he has already had his say on this campaign. He believes that it could affect the players on the pitch. He has also taken what could be considered as a parting swipe aimed at the United fans.

“There's maybe too much made of it by the supporters. They are obviously passionate about Manchester United, but sometimes they need to focus on supporting the club a bit more than getting carried away with the technicalities of who's in charge.

“Personally, I think the Glazers have always put money in to Manchester United to buy players when needed.

Having said that, I don't think the manager needs to buy too many players there anyway. They have a lot of good youngsters coming through the ranks.”

“However, it's a bit of a distraction when the fans are chanting at every game.”

The Green and Gold campaign is all about making an impact, the chanting and the scarves is getting the campaign media attention.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, I get what Foster is saying, it might affect the players but the Glazers have to go! The club is in over £700 million worth of debt and it’s only going to get worse and something has to be done about it. The fans are only doing what they can to save their club.

It was the comments that followed that surprised me. Most United fans have backed Foster and to come out with something that sounds like a swipe is a shame.

Foster went on to say that he is looking forward to playing in front of the Birmingham fans, who will support the team.

“They are fans who are always going to get behind the team and it is nice to know I am joining a club like that.

“They are not the kind of supporters who boo the team off.

‘“At the bigger teams some fans expect too much sometimes.

“Whereas at Birmingham the fans are very happy to be involved in the Premier League.”

It could of course have come across totally wrong and he didn’t mean it like that at all.

Man United have confirmed that they will be freezing season ticket prices for next season after much speculation that ticked prices would increase.

On ManUtd.com the club confirmed that the price of attending a game at Old Trafford for season-ticket holders would stay priced at £27 to £49 for adults. Over 65’s tickets stay at half of price of an adult ticket, but there is a cap of £20. Children’s tickets also stay the same at £10. Season tickets will continue to cost from £513 to £931, not including tickets for the Champions League or Cup matches.

MUST (Manchester United Supporters Trust) have said that this it their first victory against the Glazers.

MUST Chief Executive Duncan Drasdo has been quoted as saying:

"This clearly demonstrates the power supporters have when they come together as a unified group.”

"We know from sources inside the club that the Glazers are very concerned about the growing Green & Gold campaign which has seen the membership counter on the Manchester United Supporters Trust website increase from 36,000 two months ago to 145,000."

"The campaign is only two months old but this is an incredible victory at such an early stage and will undoubtedly be a huge boost to supporters."

I have to agree that it is the first victory, how likely is it that the ticket prices would have gone up if there wasn’t the green and gold campaign? I think there’s a good chance that they would have.

A survey of 2,000 fans conducted by YouGov has shown that 80% of Man United fans and 70% of Liverpool fans believe that their clubs would be better run if owned by fans.

Man United and Liverpool clash at Old Trafford this weekend, there is no love lost between the fans but there is one thing we have in common. Both sets of supporters want their American owners out of the club.

Liverpool are in £237m worth of debt, if they think that is bad, United are £716.5m worth of debt.
The survey also showed that Man United fans on average would be willing to invest £600 of their own money into the club, if that means that the Glazers would sell up.

The Chief Executive of MUST (Manchester United Supporters Trust) Duncan Drasdo has been quoted as saying: "We know there's a huge appetite out there to change the ownership at United.”

"This [the amount fans are willing to invest] shows there's the commitment and the will amongst supporters to play a significant role in any bid and new ownership structure.”

The Chief Executive of Supporters Direct David Boyle has also had his say:
"Fans are realising that the choice is a simple one - pay someone else's debts off and at the end, those people own it, or buy it yourself."

"These clubs should never have been allowed to be bought on the back of leveraged debt, but if the game's authorities won't act in the defence of our clubs, fans will have to."

If supporters of clubs do have their say then at least you know that the club is in good hands. Supporters will always put the club first, unlike owners. The problem with that though is how do you get supporters to have their say? Do you do a poll with everyone who has a stake in the club?

It’s a difficult one but what I want is someone to run the club who cares about it, can run it well and will not take millions of pounds out of it and bleed it dry.

A Man United employee has been sacked after wearing a green and gold scarf last Wednesday.

This isn't the first time something like this has happened since the green and gold campaign started.Earlier on this year a steward who had been working at Old Trafford for 19 years was sacked for siding with the protesters. The 53-year old was sacked by CES [the security firm employed by United] after he tried to return an anti-Glazer banner, which had been removed by stewards.

The whole idea of green and gold is to go back to the roots of Newton Heath (who became Manchester United) as a protest against United’s American owners the Glazers.

The sacked student Jerry Vyse said: “I bought the scarf for five pounds off one of the countless sellers stocking them around the outside of the stadium. I told him I would be wearing it to work at Old Trafford for my shift selling pies and Bovril for that evening’s game against AC Milan. He wished me the best of luck, but warned me that some staff were sacked on the spot for doing that.

“I put it on at half-time as the floods of people poured out to stock themselves up with fluids and solids. The fans started to cheer in solidarity.

“Hearing the commotion, the supervisor came round and ordered me to remove it. This was met with jeers from the united supporters, most of whom had the scarf on themselves.”

“When I refused, the supporters cheered, before shouting comments at the supervisor to let me get on with my job because the scarf does not effect my ability to work a till. He was then booed when he put the queue on hold to enter the kiosk and request I leave with him because my scarf was ‘anti-Glazer’.


“I turned to the supervisor and asked him why I could not continue doing my job. He said it was not because I was wearing a scarf, because if it had been a different colour he would not have minded. MUFC will no doubt state that the decision was based on uniform policy – what he told me surely refutes that. He said it was because it was ‘anti-Glazer’. Does it not sniff a little bit like a dictatorship if not even the smallest of dissents can be made about an incredibly rich man who has more or less taken over the club?

“He [the catering manager] told me to ‘take that smug grin off your face or I’m going to get very angry’. He then marched me to the Head Office of Catering.”

“He asked me, furiously, ‘Who pays your wages? Is it not Glazer?’ I answered ‘No, it’s the fans. Without them this club would not exist’. I then asked him the question: ‘Who pays Glazers wages then. Is it not the fans?’”

After Man United beat AC Milan 4-0 at Old Trafford last Wednesday, former Man United player, United fan and Milan player David Beckham picked up a green and gold scarf and wore it.

This is ridiculous, would the student have been sacked if it was a red, white and black scarf? I don’t think so.

The only thing this is likely to do is bring more publicity to the campaign, which United don’t want. The campaign is growing stronger by the day and obviously United aren’t too happy about it.

We all know [if you don't, where have you been??] that there is a group of rich Man United fan named as the ‘Red Knights’ who are preparing a bid to buy the club. It is now believed that there is now a second bidder thought to be interested.
It is thought that the second consortium is putting together a bid worth £1.2bn.

Meanwhile, Man United Chief Executive David Gill has stressed yet again that the Glazers are at Old Trafford for the long term and are NOT looking to sell.

"There are protests," Gill said.

"Everyone has the right to protest and there was certainly a lot of green and gold there on Wednesday night [against AC Milan], you cannot deny that.

"But this partnership [a deal with Telekom Malaysia] demonstrates the strength of the club. It is a long-term partnership for five years.

"We will be around for the length of this five-year deal and many more in addition to that.

"We have a sound business model and Telekom Malaysia is partnering one of the best teams in world football. That will always be the case."
"The owners thought we were doing very well on the commercial front but that there were other opportunities out there”

"This is the insight they have brought in.

"It doesn't get much media coverage but the very fact they have come in and are able to do these deals benefits us. We can reinvest that money back into the team."
We’ll see, I’m not so sure they will stay. If the protests continues and the fans continue to boycott the club, including not buying season tickets, with not enough money coming in, surely they will have to sell up.

As for reinvesting the money back into the team, we will have to wait and see with this aswell. Will Sir Alex Ferguson spend during the summer transfer window and if he does how much?

Man United chief executive David Gill has reiterated the point that Sir Alex Ferguson does have the Cristiano Ronaldo transfer money to spend, the Glazers are at Old Trafford for the long-term and has warned off the Red Knights.

One of the main talking points was bound to be the American owners, speaking at the Soccerex conference in Manchester, Gill said:

“The owners are very long-term owners and have shown that with Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which they bought back in 1994-5. They are not sellers. 

“That’s not saying people like these Red Knights can’t come forward and put a plan to them. But the Glazers have given no indication to me that they want to sell and in that case they cannot buy the asset – it’s not for sale. 

“The Glazers...are running the club in the right way.” 

If running the club the right way is taking money out of it every year and bleeding it dry, then yes, the club is being run the right way.

Speaking about the Red Knights, Gill warned them off and by the sound of it, he doesn’t have a very high opinion of one of them:

“We are aware of Jim O’Neill in that he was on our board before the takeover, Mark Rawlinson was our advisor at Freshfields

“Keith Harris will go anywhere there is publicity around, we know that and we accept that, that’s his modus operandi, but if you look at his track record in football, I don’t think it’s anything to write home about. 

“These are credible people and have every right to do what they think is in the interest of the club. 

“But that’s not going to take them anywhere if the Glazers don’t want to sell, and they have no wish to sell and from our perspective they are running the club in the right way.” 

After Ronaldo was sold for a record breaking £80 million during the summer, a few players have come in but Man United fans were expecting a bit more of the money to be spent. With all the talk about the debt that United are in, many believe that the money isn’t there but according to Gill, that’s not true, the money is still there.

"The money from Ronaldo is sitting there in the bank account, we've been clear on that.

"But Alex has been very clear he isn't going out to chase and overpay for a player just because everyone else thinks we should. He's a Scot, he wants value for money.

"We've spent a lot of money on (Fulham's) Chris Smalling and that's the sort of player we want to bring in - a young player who we feel will develop as a player and hopefully give us service for many, many years to come.

"Alex is very comfortable with it. He wouldn't be shy in saying he wasn't comfortable and we need to buy a player.

"We're a successful team and the way it's moved on since Cristiano left after six very successful years with us demonstrated why he's comfortable with what he's got."

I agree that Sir Alex wants to bring in young talent and doesn’t want to over spend but in the previous summer transfer window he was perfectly happy to spend £30.75m on Dimitar Berbatov. That is over spending, Berbatov is a great player, hasn’t been consistent enough at Old Trafford but he wasn’t worth £30.75m.

The campaign to get the Glazers out of Old Trafford has stepped up another gear with the news that MUST (Manchester United Supporters Trust) and the Red Knights (a group of wealthy Man United fans) have joined forces.

It has been confirmed that the Red Knights did meet yesterday, along with some representatives from MUST. It has also been confirmed that the Red Knights are putting a bid together to buy the club from the Glazers.

Here are two statements, which have just been released.

The chief executive of MUST, Duncan Drasdo has released this statement:

“I can confirm that we were present at the ’secret’ meeting of the Red Knight Group yesterday and have been involved in discussions for some time. This development is hugely welcome as there is a genuine desire to see a change of ownership at Manchester United”.

“Initially the Red Knight Group has effectively set a challenge to Manchester United supporters to demonstrate they wish to see an alternative ownership proposal developed. In the first instance supporters are being asked to do this simply by joining the free online membership of the Supporters Trust (MUST) and swelling its ranks to an initial target of at least 100,000.”

“It is also essential for a majority of two key groups, the Old Trafford Season Ticket holders and those with Executive facilities, to show their appetite for participation by joining the MUST online campaign.”

A statement from Finsbury Group, who are representing the Red Knights Group reads:

Following the intense media speculation overnight, we can confirm that a group of high net worth individuals, who support Manchester United (known as the “Red Knights”), met in London yesterday. This group is supportive of current management but are looking at the feasibility of putting together a proposal to be put to the Glazer Family regarding the ownership of Manchester United. These discussions are in early stages and no contact has been made with the Glazer Family.

For such a proposal to be viable, it would require the involvement and support of Manchester United supporters worldwide. The Red Knights have been liaising with the Manchester United Supporters Trust (“MUST”) and their representatives attended yesterday’s meeting. As a first step, the Red Knights want supporters to demonstrate their commitment by joining the free online membership of the Supporters Trust.
Any new ownership model would aim not only to put the Club on a sound financial footing, but would also aim to put the supporters at the heart of everything the Club does.

In the coming weeks the Red Knights will continue to work with MUST and others to formulate our proposal and further statements will be issued in due course.

This is massive news, the Red Knights and MUST need the supporters help and backing from around the globe. MUST already have 54,044 Man United fans signed up for free or full members. If you haven’t signed up, you can for free (or if you choose as a full paid member) here.

The Glazers may have said last night that the club isn’t for sale but it will be at a price. Everyone has their price and the Glazers will have.

Meanwhile, Man United defender Patrice Evra has confirmed that the players are aware of what is going on and they aren't against the fans trying to get rid of the owners. It sounds like he is backing the fans but without saying it, obviously he wouldn't want to publically back the people who employ him.

"They are the original colours of [Man United] and the fans wear them because they love this club," Evra  has said. "They [the fans] have their reasons for doing it and we don't think that they're crazy.
"They'd like things to change."

More to follow….

Tonight it is believed that a group of Manchester United supporters known as the ‘Red Knights’ have met in London to discuss a possible take over of the club.

The Red Knights have said that they would like the supporters to play a key role in the campaign; they have confidence in manager Sir Alex Ferguson and chief executive David Gill, and they are looking to change the owners of Manchester United.

Man United’s owners the Glazer’s have been under attack from Man United fans, with the green and gold campaign growing everyday. MUST (Manchester United Supporters Trust) has been heading the campaign, they currently have (at the time of writing this) 53,555 members. If you aren’t a member you can sign up for free by clicking here.

Many Man United fans have never liked the owners but after it was revealed that the club was in £716.5m debt, the protests have started up again. This time they aren’t going to die down.

Those thought to be present in today’s meeting Goldman Sachs economist and former board member of Man United Jim O'Neill, who is also a Man United season ticket holder, football financier Keith Harris, Phillip Marshall and Lawyer Mark Rawlinson.

A spokesperson for the Glazers has said: “Our position is that Manchester United is not for sale.”


Man United fans have a long battle ahead with the Glazers but it is possible. They may say that the club isn’t up for sale but everything is at a price. We just have to find a way of raising the money and getting them out of United.

We just have to keep on at it and they will sell up. Everyone has their price no matter what they say.

Yesterday Man United Chief Executive David Gill spoke to Radio Five Live. During the interview he claimed that if Sir Alex Ferguson wanted a player, he would have the funds.

Man United are thought to be in around £716 million in debt, which probably has gone up. We sold Cristiano Ronaldo during the summer for £80 million, it was expected that we would go for a world-class player but that didn’t happen. Even though we have money problems, apparently we can spend money.

Gill said:

“We didn’t get Benzema but we did offer 35 million Euros”
“[We made] just one phone call to the states [to the Glazer family], saying we would like to make an offer of 35 million euros and they said ‘fine’
“ We did it, but Benzema went to Real Madrid for something like over 40 million euros. Sir Alex has gone on record saying that was too much. But if I went to Joel Glazer and said ‘Alex wants a player, can we have the money?’, the answer would be an unequivocal yes. They have demonstrated it.”

“From my own personal perspective, we have no doubt that they [the Glazers] would support whatever we require.
“They will only get value back by ensuring the team continues to be successful, continues to attract exciting players and continues to produce results off the pitch.”

So by the sound of it, Sir Alex does have money.

Gill was also asked if he could spend the money from the sale of Ronaldo, his answer was:

Gill said:

"Without doubt. We used £15m to buy Antonio Valencia but we have well over £100m sitting in the bank."

’Over £100 million sitting in the bank?’ Is that believable? If United did have that amount of money, surely some of it would go onto paying off the debts? Honestly, I don’t have a clue whether we have money there or not but it isn’t being spent and I do have a feeling that this is to try and keep the Man United fans quiet.

The transfer window closes today and I wouldn’t expect any news from Man United, these comments come at a funny time. If this was said before or at the beginning of the transfer window then Man United fans would have expected a big name signing, it’s too late now.

What I do know is that this interview won’t stop the Man United fans from protesting, it isn’t going to shut us up and we will carry on campaigning to get the Glazers out of the club whether there is money to spend or not.

I suppose we will have to wait and see what happens in the summer.

It is believed that some wealthy Man United fans are preparing a bid to takeover the club. Football finance expert Keith Harris has revealed that he has been approached by wealthy Man United fans who want to take the club over.

"You sense that the momentum is gathering and this time these fans truly mean it," Harris told BBC Sport.
"I think they are saying that enough is enough, there is too much gearing on this football club and it is unhealthy."

Harris also spoke on the BBC Sports show Football Focus, which was aired BBC1 today.

"We have been approached and if we can lend our weight for doing something for the good of Manchester United and football we will," Harris said.

In this case of Manchester United, of whom I am a huge fan and have been for 50 years, they are playing with an icon of football, one of the most respected football brands in the world and it is in danger.
"Seventy-five pence of every pound that [Manchester United] fans are spending is now going to the Glazers either for themselves or to pay debts."
"If these rumblings become a revolution and fans stop going - as difficult as it is for them not to go - and the pounds stop coming in, there is real peril."

"It depends on the Glazers' attitude," Harris continued.
"Clearly they appeared impervious to the protests when they took the club over and that was fine.
"They don't go [to watch United] very often, they stay in America but you've got to think their businesses in America haven't done well, they can't have done, because the world in general has not done well in business.
"They are probably highly geared in their business activities in America so, if this is an opportunity for them to take the money and go, I would hope they would listen carefully to that offer, providing the money can be raised and I am confident it can be."

Man United fans have been campaingning for the Glazers to leave Old Trafford ever since they bought the club in 2005 but over recent weeks it has picked up pace.

Man United have released a statement, which read:

"Manchester United is the most profitable football club in the world”
"Last year, on a record turnover of £278m, the club made a record cash profit of £91m. Interest payments were £41m and wages accounted for less than half of the turnover.
"The recent bond issue has been very successful and provides the club with certainty in its interest payments, as well as great flexibility with the removal of bank covenants.
"The cash from the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo is available for Sir Alex to spend and it will be spent on players who are available for purchase and who the manager thinks can improve the squad, not to prove to pundits that it exists."

If this is true then it will be music to the Man United fans ears. The Glazers can say that the club isn’t up for sale all they want but everyone can be bought. They aren’t really Manchester United fans and I believe the club should be in hands of people who actually care about what happens to it.

I guess we will see what happens over the next few weeks and months.

If you are already a member of MUST (Manchester United Supporters Trust) then you would have already got this message. If you aren’t, why aren’t you? To join all you have to do is go to this link and join up, easy as that- http://www.joinmust.org/refer

What You Can Do-

The MUST strategy is based on three strands which might be summarised as
Supporters, Political, Financial.

We'll go into more detail in due course but suffice to say growing the
network of Manchester United supporters is the most important single thing
any of us can do right now. Building a huge
international network of Manchester United supporters is crucial not just
in order to whield a big enough stick to persuade the Glazers to go but
also to form a significant group to participate in any future ownership
structure.

The financial component is really encouraging. We have been approached by a
number of super rich/influential United supporters interested in exploring
the options for a change of ownership. The individuals are high profile and
totally credible. If/when they choose to go public is a matter for them but
we will be appealing for all those potentially interested in participating
in future ownership of Manchester United to join us or make contact now.

If we're going to win this battle and prevent them from doing any more
damage to our club it is going to require the whole of the Manchester
United family to come together from your ordinary supporter to the wealthy
"Red Knights". We understand the mood has already changed within Old
Trafford as everyone realises they have to go sooner rather than later.

ACTIONS:
* Ask every United supporter you know to join MUST as a free e-member and
chase them up to make sure they do:
http://www.joinmust.org/refer

MUST has grown rapidly in the last week - now more than 41,000 members. We
can double that if we all make the effort.

* Sign the Number 10 petition. We understand this was created by a MUST
(e)member. Well done to Andrew Henderson for getting off his backside to
take action:
Wording starts: "We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to believe
the Government should urgently take action on behalf of all football
supporters to prevent Manchester United Football Club (and other English
football clubs) being destroyed by corporate greed ...."
Sign here:
http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/football4fans/

* GREEN & GOLD - wear your colours with pride

The GREEN & GOLD campaign is about showing your opposition to the Glazer
regime in a very visible way by wearing the old GREEN & GOLD colours of the
original Newton Heath - the origin of Manchester United. It is important
not to get in people's faces with this - we want to persuade supporters to
join rather than get into arguments that turn them against the campaign.

MUST has been ordering GREEN & GOLD scarves as fast as as suppliers can
produce them and selling them at cost price (£2.50) to help get the GREEN &
GOLD "ideavirus" to critical mass. It looks like we're already there
judging by the colours on show at OT on Wednesday night. However we're
continuing with another 2000 in time for Portsmouth(H) on Feb 6th on sale
from outside MUST office on matchday. They'll also be available online
shortly. Street sellers have been posing as MUST sellers so don't give a
donation if they demand one or ask for more than £2.50. Safest to buy from
the MUST stalls or Premier Inn (formerly Golden Tulip).

T-Shirts United have also produced a special fundraising t-shirt - use this
link to give MUST a special commission:
http://www.tshirtsunited.com/affiliates/must/luhg-green-and-yellow-ribbon-tshirt.html

MUST will get a 10% commission on all other products too so please bookmark
this link for future use:
http://www.tshirtsunited.com/affiliates/must.html

* Donate - time and/or money
We've got a number of initiatives that are going to require significant
funding - web development, mailshots, PR stunts, GREEN & GOLD promotion.
These will be detailed in due course. If you'd like to help by donating to
MUST please do so via your account here:
https://www.joinmust.org/members/emsp.php

If you'd like to donate your time to the cause and especially if you have
some specific skills you think will help please get in touch with the MUST
office via the helpdesk.
http://www.joinmust.org/help

We also have more details about the Green and Gold Fundraiser on Sunday.

GREEN & GOLD MUST FUNDRAISER - MANCHESTER THIS SUNDAY - ARSENAL CHUBB
CLUB - FREE G&G SCARF

For those who can get into central Manchester on Sunday we'll be holding a
special GREEN & GOLD CAMPAIGN FUNDRAISING CHUBB CLUB.

TV cameras and other media will be invited to attend. Get onto your mates
now to get a group to come down for REDS ONLY unbeatable atmosphere.

Venue: UPSTAIRS at Walkabout - 13 Quay St, MANCHESTER M3 3HN - after
entering main bar turn left and go through doors to stairs.
Time: Upstairs bar opens 2.30pm
Tickets: £3 pay on door - and get a FREE GREEN & GOLD scarf. If you've
already one the idea is to give it to someone who hasn't got one - spread
the GREEN & GOLD anti-Glazer virus
Drinks: 25% off all drinks and food

Thank you to everyone for your help. There is also a facebook group, which you can join by clicking here.

Man United may have gone to the top of the table after a 4-0 win over Hull, mainly thanks to Wayne Rooney but that hasn’t stopped the fans from voicing their concerns. For 90 minutes “Love United, Hate Glazers” and “We want the Glazers out” chants rang through Old Trafford, probably much to the annoyance of Sir Alex Ferguson. The last 10 minutes were the loudest and hopefully on Wednesday at Old Trafford it will be incredibly loud for the full 90 minutes.

In Sir Alex Ferguson’s match day programme he wrote that the fans should stop the protests and show unity. Normally most Man United fans will hang on every word that Sir Alex says, but not this time.

"Some of our fans are clearly unhappy with our financial position, but we mustn't allow the situation to become divisive.
"The danger is that we could be presented as being split, which would be harmful and inaccurate, because I believe the vast majority of United fans are behind us and appreciate the importance of standing together in support of the team.”

Of course the fans aren’t happy with the financial situation, United are around £716 million in debt. United may have been able to raise £504 million in bonds but that will still have to be paid back and it is being reported that United will have to pay an extra £54 million in interest.

The fact that Sir Alex has come out and publicly said that he is concerned means that the fans are getting somewhere. This campaign is only a week old and is starting to get some high profile attention.

What Is Being Done?

Green and yellow scarves have been flying off the MUST stalls and right now they are like gold dust. MUST have ordered many more scarves ahead of the match against Manchester City on Wednesday. I have had a few emails asking for information on where they can be bought.

Green and yellow scarves by clicking here (Manchester United Supporters Trust get commission):

You can buy green and yellow flags by clicking here (Manchester United Supporters Trust get commission)


You can also buy the Newton Heath retro shirt by clicking here.

One of the plans is to hit the Glazers where it hurts. Don’t buy official merchandise, don’t buy tickets, if you already have a ticket then don’t buy food, drink, match day programmes, etc. Unsubscribe to MUTV and MUTVonline. It is being reported that the Megastore is going to start selling retro Newton Heath shirts, don’t buy them from the official store, get your stuff from MUST. If you do buy from the official store, the money goes to the Glazers, if money isn’t going into the club then that will mean a loss of money which will hopefully lead to the Glazers selling up.

Tomorrow a group of fans will be standing outside Carrington Training ground from 9am. The more people who can go, the better.

This isn’t going to go away anytime soon, hopefully it will grow and grow. We already have (at the time of writing) 25,888 members on a facebook group, which you can join here.

A big thanks to Joe Hoyle for the images.

Another day and yet again more stories on Man United’s financial difficulty. Today it is being reported by The Sun that the Glazers have asked the Man United players to invest some money back into the club.

When the players returned from the training camp in Qatar they were handed the prospectus. The bonds, which are being sold, are going at £50,000 each and the players have been asked to buy some.

"The players don't know what to make of it, really," a ‘source’ is quoted as saying.


"Most are bemused that the people who pay their wages are basically trying to find out if they can have some back.


"A few of the lads know a good investment when they see one, but not too many seem prepared to put their money where their mouths are!"

In another story in a different tabloid, it is being reported that the Glazer family could take out more than £600 million from Man United’s revenues over the next seven years.

There is an article published by the Telegraph that will explain it a lot better than I could. Click here to read it.

Last night I told you about the plan for Man United fans to wear green and yellow to protest against the Glazer ownership. Just a quick update to let you know that this plan is going ahead, it’s a bit late in the day for tonight so it will go ahead for the Premier League game against Hull this Saturday.

Man United were originally Newton Heath, their strip colours were green and yellow. Full credit for this idea goes to Chatmaster at Red Issue.

If you want to support the campaign to show the Glazers that Man United fans won’t stand and watch them run the club into the ground, wear green and yellow, NOT red!

Green and yellow scarves by clicking here (Manchester United Supporters Trust get commission):

You can buy green and yellow flags by clicking here (Manchester United Supporters Trust get commission)


You can also buy the Newton Heath retro shirt by clicking here.

Former Man United player Lee Sharpe has said that what the Glazers have done to Manchester United is a disgrace. Ahead of the massive Carling Cup clash tonight, Sharpe has spoken about the Glazers, Mark Hughes, Carlos Tevez and the all-important game.

Sharpe said: “It’s disgraceful and a huge shame what is going on with the debt.


"The hard work carried out by Sir Alex Ferguson and everyone at the club over the last 20 years is at threat."


“United have been winning titles galore, building the club up in to a force. The Glazer’s have undermined all this hard work and stole its thunder.


“Who made the decision to sell to the Glazers? It’s wrong that the club has been put in to so much debt and then you hear stories of them taking money out of the club as well.”


“At the end of the day, good players cost a lot of money. When even Manchester United can’t afford to buy players, you know that something is seriously wrong.


“I’m sure that the manager and the fans will put a stop to it. From the outside looking in it seems that everything is being taken from underneath them.”

Sharpe’s former team-mate at Manchester United was Mark Hughes, who was recently sacked by Manchester City.

Sharpe went on to say: "‘Sparky’ [Mark Hughes] was doing a really good job. Manchester City were in the top four or five and were just a few points away.
“I thought it was a really, really harsh to sack Hughes. Mancini is a great manager, but he won’t do any better or worse than ‘Sparky.’”


Tevez has spoken about him and the Manchester City team wanting revenge for the 4-3 loss at Old Trafford earlier on in the season. Tevez will be playing for his new club against his old club tonight after a very controversial move.

Sharpe added: “Carlos Tevez is an important player in any team; he works harder than any footballer and loves to play the game. You can bet he’ll be breaking his neck to play tonight and score a goal."


“United are such a hard team to play against though. I got beat 4-0 when I was at Leeds and Bradford, and even with a weakened team they are still so hard to beat.


“I’m going for a draw tonight and then a United win at Old Trafford. Although, I don’t know if that’s my heart ruling my head.”

Ahead of tomorrows all-important first leg tie against Manchester City, Man United fans are going back to the clubs roots. As a symbol to show the Glazers how we feel, United fans are buying green and yellow scarves.

The Glazers are putting Man United into financial difficulty and it has to be stopped now before it goes too far. Man United are now in millions and millions of pounds worth of debt and it has to be sorted, now.

For any of you who don’t know, Man United were originally Newton Heath, the colours were green and yellow. The idea behind this will show that the fans are United and TV camera’s will also pick it up. The more press attention this gets the better. Many people are used to Man United’s red, white and black, green and yellow will definitely get the attention.

Since it is a bit late in the day to let people know, this will mainly be going ahead for the Man United game against Hull this weekend.

Following a meeting on Saturday between Man United fans, The Guardian printed a story claiming that Man United fans are calling for Sir Alex Ferguson to resign.

Man United fans aired their opinions on what we can do to get rid of the Glazers. One fan said that we should call for Sir Alex Ferguson to resign. Sir Alex is one of the biggest names in world football, if he quits and shows the Glazers what he feels then surely they will leave. This is assuming that Sir Alex feels the same as the majority of fans and wants them to leave.

MUST (Manchester United Supporters Trust) has responded to this article and as a result, it has been changed.

The statement read:

Contrary to reports today regarding Manchester United supporters calling for Sir Alex Ferguson to resign MUST (the Manchester United Supporters Trust) wishes to put it on record that we believe the organisation and the vast majority of United supporters are 100% behind Sir Alex Ferguson. The only people we want to see leave Old Trafford are the Glazer family.

All United supporters are entitled to voice their opinion but these comments were made by one individual at a meeting where it was made clear it was private and journalists were briefed that it was totally off the record to allow supporters to speak freely. We believe that all those journalists who attended the meeting respected this agreement but the story came from reports on internet message boards followed by a call direct to Mr Flacks rather than from the meeting itself.... See More

MUST does not believe that the views expressed represented a widespread view of those present and indeed another speaker who offered the counter point of view was given a loud round of applause in response.

We believe Johnny Flacks and indeed every Manchester United supporter is absolutely entitled to express their views but it is important to distinguish individual views from those of organisations or those present at a meeting.

We believe Manchester United has the best manager, the best players and the best supporters. It is only the owners that let our great club down. They should go before they do any more damage.

Personally I wouldn’t want Sir Alex to resign and I don’t think it would work anyway. The only thing it would really do is get a lot more press attention to this story.