There's a huge elephant in the room that Sir Jim Ratcliffe didn't address in the £2billion Man United stadium unveiling - and he will need to be Harry Houdini to make it work, writes SIMON JORDAN
3 days, 17 hours ago

There's a huge elephant in the room that Sir Jim Ratcliffe didn't address in the £2billion Man United stadium unveiling - and he will need to be Harry Houdini to make it work, writes SIMON JORDAN

Daily Mail  

Join Mail+ to read Simon Jordan's unmissable column every Wednesday, plus more of your favourite writers, exclusive stories and in-depth sports reporting I'll always listen to a man who has made billions, but one thing didn't quite add up when I was listening to him unveiling the shiny new stadium Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s achievements dwarf mine so maybe I shouldn’t be questioning him, but it’s beyond me how he squares the circle for all his bold statements regarding Manchester United to come true. As I suspected, this week’s glossy 'unveiling' of a 100,000-seat New Trafford was what the stadium would look like, rather than someone putting up their hand up to explain funding Cut it however you want, the likelihood is of more significant debt being loaded onto Manchester United before they can monetise the stadium when it opens It’s the building of a shiny new cathedral and every nook and cranny will be designed to bring in money Surely the project won’t work if United finish mid-table every year until the stadium is completed Any proper United needs a great team to match the bricks, mortar and 'umbrella' of a world-class arena Sir Jim knows United have a slick commercial engine – one Glazer success! Ratcliffe is a man of great substance but how he engineers a turnaround in fortunes in the next three years is unclear Addressing the Glazer-invoked debt situation would be a good initiative, perhaps that will find its way into an overall refinancing package with the stadium I assume United will seek some preferential debt borrowing, perhaps cheap Government money indexed to the aforementioned regeneration initiative, as United are apparently so pivotal to that! United need to do more than rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic if they are going to fulfil Ratcliffe's bet that they are Britain’s wealthiest club by 2028 Remarkably, United still generate £600m when they are achieving comparatively nothing on the field and the brand is being diminished How Sir Jim plans to make this all happen is an important detail he missed out during this recent burst of preferred accessibility We can’t have people like Stuart Pearce unwell - what chance have the rest of us got!

History of this topic

Man United's £2billion super stadium plans thrown into DOUBT - as industry insiders call into question Sir Jim Ratcliffe's bold statements
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1 month ago
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3 months, 3 weeks ago
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has watched Man United burn, ridding himself of little people while Erik ten Hag cost them hundreds of millions. There is not a lot further to fall, writes OLIVER HOLT
4 months, 2 weeks ago
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5 months, 1 week ago
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8 months, 2 weeks ago
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9 months ago
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9 months, 2 weeks ago
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1 year ago
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1 year ago
Sir Jim Ratcliffe outlines plans for success and glamour at Manchester United
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1 year ago
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1 year ago
Sir Jim Ratcliffe outlines his plan to revive Manchester United
1 year ago
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1 year ago
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1 year, 2 months ago
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1 year, 2 months ago
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1 year, 2 months ago
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1 year, 2 months ago
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1 year, 2 months ago
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1 year, 4 months ago
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