Manchester United have issued a statement following leaked videos of Richard Arnold speaking face-to-face with angry supporters about the club's dire situation.
A group of fans gathered near the Red Devils chief executive's home in Cheshire on Saturday and Arnold decided to meet with them at a local pub for a lengthy discussion which included topics such as new manager Erik ten Hag 's transfer pursuit of Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, the club's owners, the Glazer family, and more.
"Richard heard that a group of fans had gathered in a pub near his house," United explained. "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."
The videos of Arnold surfaced on social media late Saturday evening, with supporters online becoming privy to the head honcho's comments. Arnold, who replaced the much-maligned Ed Woodward in February, labelled the Red Devils' disastrous season in which they finished sixth in the Premier League a "f****** nightmare" and confirmed that Ten Hag will be backed in the summer transfer window.
The CEO also criticised the club's transfer policy under Woodward, which Arnold described as 'burning through cash'. He went on to confirm that any future plans to build a new stadium or to revamp Old Trafford and their training facilities would need investment from outsiders.
"We have spent £1 billion on players, more than anyone in Europe," Arnold was filmed saying. "I am not thrilled with where we are and it does not sit easily on whether we can get sorted for the future. But what happened is we f***ing burned through cash. You can't go to our training ground and ask where the £1 billion is because I don't think we have done well with the money we have spent historically.
"I'm not here to defend Joel Glazer, he can only speak for himself. I want to talk you, you have come here to make your views known and I respect that.
"We have blown through an enormous amount of money; for this summer, the money that the manager and the Director of Football wants, is there. For the future, for investing in a new stadium and that sort of stuff, to get a £250 million training ground – we have got to do something. We have got to get investors in.
"I need investors to do what I want to do with the club. No stadium can be built by any club without that, you either borrow the money or get investors. The money has got to come from somewhere.
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"You may not like our current owners, I cannot help that, but if you want someone else to come in – they have to look, and say ok, the fans love the club and love the team. Last year was a nightmare, it was a f***ing nightmare. I was hating every game. There were the protests."
On United's transfer plans this summer, he added: "Money is not a consideration in who we want. It is if the manager wants him and if he has done his homework on the player. It is £100million or £200million? Do you want me buying the players? Does that not ring a bell?"
