Man Utd braced for more redundancies

It was another difficult day for Manchester United on the pitch on Saturday. On Monday, the focus will be off the field.

A staff meeting is due to be held later at which it is anticipated an extra round of redundancies, possibly as many as 170, will be confirmed.

It is part of co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe's determination to drive down costs in an effort to address continuing losses at Old Trafford. United have lost over £300m over the past three years and last Wednesday, the club revealed a loss of £27.7m in their second quarter financial results.

Despite an initial round of 250 redundancies last year, which club officials said were likely to result in an overall saving of between £40m-£45m over time, Ratcliffe feels further cuts are needed.

Yet many question whether Ratcliffe is choosing the right targets given the first team are 15th in the Premier League and were awful for 70 minutes at Everton on Saturday, before eventually fighting back to claim a 2-2 draw.

This came after confirmation they spent £37.7m after 31 December on deals involving new arrivals Patrick Dorgu and Ayden Heaven, plus Amad Diallo's contract extension.

In addition, United's financial chiefs will have to grapple with the potential loss of £10m from United's sponsorship deal with Adidas, which is triggered by the club missing out on Champions League qualification, plus the increasing likelihood of a big drop in Premier League merit payments.

Last season, each club received £2.9m per place in the table. That meant United received £36.7m after an eight-placed finish - a significant drop from the 2022-23 figure, when they finished third.

However, if United remain 15th, the equivalent 'merit' payment last season would have been £16.9m, a reduction of almost £20m.

That is likely to put further pressure on United's chances of bolstering Ruben Amorim's squad in the summer and will bring greater scrutiny on many of the club's recent transfer dealings.