Sport

Paul Merson slams ‘pathetic’ plans for Manchester United’s new stadium

'Circus tent', 'alien city', 'UAE-esque' or 'showstopper'?

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 13th March 2025

Ex-footballer and pundit Paul Merson has branded the recently revealed plans for Manchester United’s new stadium as “pathetic” in a recent interview.

The former Arsenal and Aston Villa turned manager, commentator and TV personality spoke to Sky Sports this week after the CGIs for what some supporters are already dubbing ‘New Trafford’ were shown to the world on Tuesday.

Now, while it’s fair to say the designs have been pretty divisive, for Merson it’s still a headscratcher as to why United supporters want to leave such a historic ground and one that is still the second-largest football stadium in the country for something new and so different.

The 56-year-old didn’t hold back when giving his opinion on the matter, insisting, “If I was a Man United fan I’d be fuming.”

As you can see, ‘Merse’ begins by saying he has “no interest at all”, adding that he thinks “It’s pathetic […] they’ve got one of the biggest stadiums in the Premier League” and therefore aren’t necessarily crying out for more seats, nor an entirely new sporting arena.

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It’s worth noting that Old Trafford’s capacity hasn’t necessarily been the issue or priority in recent years: dated facilities, lack of technology such as screens for VAR and the infamous leaking roof, which has been taken into account by architects Foster + Partners.

“Why would you need a new stadium?”, he asks, before going on to suggest that they “need new players” instead and should be more worried about the team and finishing in the top six, “let alone Champions League.”

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It’s no secret that the Red Devils’ steady slump out of the premier European competition has cost them significantly in recent years, with co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe delivering some alarming revelations about the state of the club’s finances in an interview with Gary Neville prior to the stadium reveal.

Merson summarises his opinion by saying, “I can’t believe what I’ve been seeing over the last couple of days – I’m flabbergasted.” Meanwhile, many people are chiefly concerned with how the stadium is going to be paid for, despite Mayor Andy Burnham’s reassurance that “no public money” will be used.

‘New Trafford’ is set to cost £2 billion and could be completed within five years.

Merson might have very strong opinions on Man United building a new stadium, to begin with, but what we’ve really enjoyed is seeing people’s reactions to the admittedly striking design.

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The 100,000-seater venue will be the biggest in the UK, with its main features including a giant tent-like eco-friendly weather-shielding roof as well as three tall spires to mirror both the trident on the club’s badge and carry over the historic ‘Trinity’ theme.

However, not everyone can agree on whether it’s a masterpiece or an eye-sore…

We went out On The Street in Manchester to see what people made of it:

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Featured Images — Sky Sports/Foster + Partners

Sport

Manchester City staff member sacked after wearing Man United shirt to shift

Danny Jones Danny Jones Man City staff member sacked after wearing Man United shirt on the bar on derby day

Man City have divided a fair few supporters after they sacked a barman for wearing a United shirt to their shift during the Manchester derby.

Although it’s not exactly surprising, the decision has ruffled plenty of feathers on both sides, as well as among neutral fans.

The Blues emerged victorious in the 197th clash between the two local rivals, winning 3-0 on an evening that paid tribute to the late, great Ricky Hatton, but another backstory looming over the fixture that caught the attention of football fans online was the City staff member who lost his job.

Working on concessions inside the Etihad Stadium before the game, the barman was made known to the official MCFC Matchday Support channel on X, who quickly confirmed he had been let go before the game even began.

In the since-deleted post, the home fan who reported the worker wrote: “Absolute joke – letting one of the bar staff in block 315 wear a United shirt on Derby Day.”

Although many City fans applauded the fast action by the club on the day, it’s fair to say that sacking him so soon that he didn’t even last until kick-off has rubbed many others the wrong way.

One Liverpool fan commented: “I hate United way more than City, but to sack him from a job because of an item of clothing is crazy. So, so poor from Manchester City, this. It’s just football lads, he’s not wearing a political or derogatory symbol. It’s literally a football team…”

Another neutral added: “Getting a minimum wage worker sacked for having a bit of fun instead of just winding him up is the absolute sad state this country is in.”

Even the ‘Out Of Context Football Manager‘ parody account chipped in, writing: “The guy’s been sacked for this. All he needed was a formal warning. I get he’s taking the p*ss – but losing a salary he might really need over this?!

While many have been even more outspoken in their response, as you can see, many supporters – be they Red or otherwise – have come up with arguably the perfect solution:

Manchester City are yet to comment on the backlash, apart from the initial confirmation that the still-anonymous staff member has been released from his position, but as for Man United, simply sticking him on the kiosks in the Stretford End could prove to be a very easy bit of positive PR.

Besides the growing frustration around the fanbase, as Ruben Amorim has yet to turn things around at Old Trafford (pressure was growing even before the derby day defeat), the Red Devils could no doubt do with some positive press for a change.

In fact, it was only earlier this year that co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, CEO Omar Berrada and the wider INEOS Sports administration sanctioned a second round of redundancies at United, with approximately 450 individuals losing their jobs.

That being said, although some have labelled the sacking of the now ex-City barman as “absolutely horrendous behaviour” for Man City, many jumped to quip back that “[United are] more likely to sack more bar staff, not hire them”, as well as simultaneously taking aim at their significant transfer spending.

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Featured Images — Mataniels via X (now deleted)/The Manc Group

Sport

Salford Red Devils supporters group outline plans for the next major protest march

Danny Jones Danny Jones

Salford Red Devils supporters trust, The 1873, have outlined details of their next major march in protest over the club’s well-publicised ownership troubles and financial crisis.

The fan group, which has mobilised on multiple occasions already this year, is set to hit the streets once again this month and in larger numbers than ever, confirming another big demonstration before their next home game this weekend.

Sharing the update with fellow Red Devils on social media, 1837 leaders are demanding “truth and accountability from the top” ahead of the peaceful protest through Salford.

They have dubbed the event ‘The Last Rally’, but we can only assume there’ll be more fan action as the weeks and possibly months of uncertainty continue.

As you can see, The 1837 are calling for like-minded supporters to rally outside another nearby amateur rugby league football team, Salford City Roosters, before marching on to a second meeting point and, ultimately, the Salford Community Stadium.

Starting in Eccles, with a stop at Barley Farm, before arriving at their club’s home ground in Barton-upon-Irwell, the plan is to gather as much awareness, support and local attention as possible.

Writing in the caption of the above post, they added: “We’ve dominated headlines. We’ve exposed bad ownership. We’ve stood together.

“A history worth fighting for. A future worth protecting. Our last chance to be heard. Don’t stay silent. Make it count.”

Following a recent meeting of the RFL and the two Greater Manchester Mayors, Andy Burnham and Paul Dennett, Salford Red Devils were given somewhat of an even further stay of execution, as it was confirmed that their ‘winding up’/administration deadline has now been adjourned until October.

Nevertheless, the majority of fans are still being kept in the dark about the exact and up-to-date nature of their rugby league club’s situation at present.

Back in June, it looked like new investors could very well still be injecting vital funds to keep key players and staff on the books, but jump to now, and it looks like they don’t know if even things like the big screen even belong to them much longer.

Once again, the march and peaceful protest will take place this Friday, 19 September, prior to the next fixture against Wakefield Trinity.

Getting points on the board will no doubt be a big plus for all, but the game looks like it will very much serve as the backdrop to the wider ongoing saga.

Are you a Red Devils fan, and if so, will you be attending the demonstration? Better still, even if not, what do you make of the circumstances surrounding your side at the moment?

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Featured Images — Ben Whitehurst (supplied via X)

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