Sir Jim Ratcliffe is planning to make a further round of approximately 200 redundancies at Manchester United, as the club seeks to offset losses of £300 million over the past three years. The move follows an earlier reduction of around 250 staff in the autumn, and employees are said to be bracing for formal notification, although management has not yet contacted them directly.
Ratcliffe, who became the club’s largest single minority shareholder last year and injected $300 million (£240 million), has seen the long-term financial outlook remain challenging despite funding for the redevelopment of the Carrington training base. High on- and off-pitch costs continue to weigh on the club’s finances.
The January transfer window saw United sign only Patrick Dorgu from Lecce for £25 million, even though head coach Ruben Amorim requires a major overhaul of his squad. Many of the players he inherited upon his appointment in late October are not suited to his preferred 3-4-3 formation.
It remains unclear how much the proposed redundancies will free up for the summer transfer market. The limited winter budget came despite the previous cost-cutting measures and the loan of Marcus Rashford to Aston Villa, with United covering 75% of his £365,000 weekly wage.
In late November, the club’s accounts revealed that sacking Erik ten Hag and appointing Amorim cost £21.4 million. Ten Hag was removed on 28 October, with coaching staff René Hake, Jelle ten Rouwelaar, Pieter Morel and Ruud van Nistelrooy also departing, at a combined compensation cost of £10.4 million. Signing Amorim and his coaching team from Sporting – Carlos Fernandes, Jorge Vital, Adélio Cândido, Emanuel Ferro and Paulo Barreira – added a further £11 million.
