Man Utd CEO Richard Arnold tells protesters in pub last season was ‘a nightmare’ and club ‘f***ing burned through cash’
MANCHESTER UNITED chief Richard Arnold has admitted the club “f***ing burned through cash” and last season was a “nightmare”.
In a stunning face-to-face meeting with anti-Glazer protesters in a Cheshire pub - ahead of the group heading to his HOUSE - the United CEO gave a damning verdict on predecessor Ed Woodward’s reign.
He revealed the club has wasted £1BILLION and cannot upgrade their stadium or training ground without new investment.
A group of 12 angry fans were gathered in a boozer and planning to protest at Arnold’s house over a lack of new signings.
Arnold, who replaced Woodward on February 1, got wind of the meeting and headed to the Boot Inn pub in Willington, Cheshire, to buy drinks for fans in an attempt to placate them.
But in a brutal assessment of the state of the club, he was filmed on saying: “We’ve f***ing burned through cash. We spent a billion pounds on players, we spent more than anyone in Europe.
“I am not thrilled with where we are, it doesn’t sit easy and we’ve got to get this sorted.
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“You can’t go to our training ground and go ‘show me where that billion pounds is here’.
“I don’t think we’ve done well with the money we’ve spent historically.
“We’ve blown through an enormous amount of money.
“Last year was a f***ing nightmare. I was hating every minute of it.”
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Fans at the meeting claimed Arnold confirmed United chiefs were in Barcelona to buy £70million-rated Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong and he had been “up for days to get the deal done”.
United fans are furious at the club’s lack of transfer activity while bitter rivals Liverpool and Manchester City have splashed the cash.
Bitter enemies Liverpool have beaten United to hitman Darwin Nunez, who joined Jurgen Klopp’s side in an £85.3million deal from Benfica.
Neighbours Manchester City have also boosted their squad with the £51.4m arrival of superstar striker Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund.
Arnold, 51, insists new boss Erik ten Hag will have funds for a summer spree as the club desperately look to improve on last season’s sixth-place — their worst Prem finish ever and 35 points behind neighbours City.
But he warned that investment from outside the club is needed to revamp a decaying Old Trafford and the club’s Carrington training base.
Arnold added: “This summer, the money that the manager and director of football wants is there.”
And in a direct dig at Woodward, he added: “Do you want me buying the players? Doesn’t that ring a bell?
“For the future, for investing in a new stadium and that sort of stuff, for a £250m training ground, we’ve got to do something, we’ve got to get investors in.
“I need that to do what I want for the club — I’ve got to have more cash than I have now.”
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And reminding fans they need the Glazers to inject more cash, he added: “The money has got to come from somewhere, you may not like them, if you want someone else to come in they have to love the club and the team.”
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A spokesman for the club has since spoken about the meeting, telling : “Richard heard that a group of fans had gathered in a pub near his house
“He went to meet them, bought them all a drink, listened to their views, and explained what the club is doing to deliver success on the pitch, improve the stadium, and strengthen engagement with fans.”
