Manchester United fans have 'hope things could be different' as owners Glazers could sell club

• Article written by anonymous Manchester United fan

Finally, there is a flickering light at the end of the tunnel.

For 17 years, the Glazer family have plundered our club, taking out billions of pounds, and putting in a big fat zero.

It was a hostile takeover built on money they didn’t have, that shouldn’t have been allowed to happen.

But now, this most divided fanbase has hope that things could be different. An owner with the club’s best interest at heart would be a great start.

When the news broke that billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, a local lad from Failsworth, was interested in buying the club, excitement spread like wildfire. Messages flew back and forth on WhatsApp groups from reds of all ages. Could this really be it?

The talk of takeover is nothing new. In 2010 the Red Knights, a group of wealthy United-supporting businessmen, claimed they would ride to our safety. It never happened.

It’s understandable that from the outside, United fans protesting against the club’s owners could look spoiled. Social media is awash with people gleefully posting how much money has been spent by United’s hierarchy in a bid to rediscover former glories.

But it’s been wasted, not spent. At the football club I’ve supported for almost thirty years, there is now incompetence at every level. We’ve become a laughing stock. A meme machine, with new content dropping every weekend.

Only Sir Alex Ferguson’s genius and David Gill’s shrewdness protected the American owners in those first eight years. When both departed in 2013, the Glazer family proceeded to put the wrong people in the wrong jobs, and now it’s showing on the pitch for the world to see.

The club has now spent three quarters of a billion pounds on interest payments to prop up the Glazer’s debt. That’s money that’s been diverted from investing in the stadium, the training facilities, the players and the recruitment.

But it’s a figure that shows we AREN’T looking for a national state to take us over, we don’t need it. Manchester United, for better or worse, is a brand that’s recognised right around the world.

The Glazer family would argue they have a lot to do with that, having increased commercial revenue since taking control. However that’s now falling, and with the club still dining out on 1999’s famous treble, the time has surely come for new history to be written.

Nothing sums up the Glazer ownership of United like the club’s stadium. Old Trafford is slowly becoming a third rate mess.

Once the envy of Europe, it’s now dilapidated, with a leaking roof, crumbling paintwork and a concourse far too small for the ground’s capacity.

Wouldn’t it be great if the money spent on dividend payments (£166 million since 2016) to the Glazer family went into keeping one of the world’s most famous stadiums in a decent state of repair. Surely that’s not too much to ask?

Protesting is nothing new for United fans. Anyone who suggests we only protest when we’re losing is wrong.

In 2010, we donned the green-and-gold and called on the owners to go, off the back of winning three league titles and making two consecutive Champions League finals.

The movement even developed a poster boy when David Beckham picked up a green and gold scarf at the end of a Champions League match against AC Milan.

I was in the Stretford End that day and that moment was celebrated like it was a last minute winning goal.

But sadly, the movement once again fizzled out, with the Glazers listing United on the New York Stock Exchange and tightening their grip on the club.

Those protests have seen fractures form in the fanbase, some beyond repair. Many left to form FC United of Manchester.

Others, like me, stayed, helpless but hopeful that the horror stories wouldn’t come to pass. Now they have, and they’re in full technicolour.

I often say United fans hate each other far more than anyone else, with different factions falling over themselves to criticise the other. But now, things seem to be changing.

The 1958 fan group deserves a lot of credit. They’ve consistently led protests against the Glazer Ownership since the failed attempt at the creation of a European Super League.

It’s not an easy task. Especially in the social-media minefield of Manchester United’s online support, but things finally feel like they’re moving in the right direction.

The Manchester United cash cow has served the Glazer family well, but it could soon start to run dry. Sponsorships are not being renewed, while a digital protest campaign has targeted businesses linked the club around the world.

I’ve said before that I’d take relegation if it meant getting rid of the Glazers. And, I dare say a few more would too.

Here’s hoping it doesn’t come to that...