Man United have agreed ‘£20m’ payout
Man United’s precarious financial state will have been a factor in waiting until the summer to appoint a permanent manager.
That is according to football finance expert Dr Dan Plumley, who has exclusively told Football Insider his verdict on Man United appointing Michael Carrick until the end of the season instead of making a permanent appointment.
Ruben Amorim was sacked as Man United manager at the beginning of the year, following a 15th-placed finish last season and after criticising the club’s hierarchy.
Man United’s lack of on-field success, including no European football this season, is hurting the club’s finances, with the latest accounts showing debt of over £1billion.
Man United move ‘makes sense financially’
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Plumley believes Man United are right to wait until the summer to make a permanent managerial appointment.
“The finances have to come into the thinking, with any managerial decision, especially because the fees are so high nowadays,” Plumley said.
“So if we look at Manchester United and what happened with Ruben Amorim and, of course, we could go back a little bit further with United, but they’ve paid a huge amount of money to get him out of his original contract at Sporting to get him in early. It’s not worked out. There’ll be a compensation fee. So those two things added together make that total cost at around £20m if those figures in the press are correct.
“And then, if you look at what you do next, of course, if you do go in for a manager now mid-season and they are on the contract, then that’s going to be another charge that you’re going to have to pay to get the manager.
“Actually waiting until the summer, I think, makes sense, sporting and financially. It does cover both, because managerial changes are always tough in January anyway. It tends to be that a lot of managerial changes happen further down the league where relegation pressures are on.
“So there are not a lot of managers in the market at this point. You’ve got a player trading aspect to the transfer market in January as well, which is a further thing to consider. And then you’ve got the finances of it. So, yeah, I think there’s definitely an element there of United waiting until the summer, in compensation fee terms and in finance terms.“
Man United facing £53m hit
Man United are looking at ways to generate revenue this season, with the club set to play 10 fewer home matches than in the whole of the 2024-25 campaign.
It is projected that Man United’s matchday revenue could drop by £53million this season in a blow to their finances.
A mid-season friendly next month in Saudi Arabia could earn Man United £5m, with the club set to have a gap in their schedule due to being knocked out of the FA Cup.