LONDON • Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward insisted on Thursday that the club remain committed to manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer despite a poor start to the season.
United are languishing in 14th in the Premier League table and a fine start to their Champions League campaign came unstuck with a 2-1 defeat by Istanbul Basaksehir last week.
“While there is still hard work ahead to achieve greater consistency, we remain absolutely committed to the positive path we are on under Ole as the team continue to develop,” said Woodward as United revealed their first quarter financial results for 2020-2021.
Solskjaer has come under fire for United’s inconsistent performances this campaign, following a strong late surge last season to finish third in the Premier League.
Former United captain Roy Keane said earlier this month that the Norwegian will “pay the price” soon if the Red Devils do not find their feet soon.
However, the 47-year-old Solskjaer has also received backing from former teammate Andy Cole, who played in the same 1999 treble-winning team as the United boss.
“Ole is a very, very nice guy. You don’t want to see anyone given a lot of stick. Since he has gone in he has turned things around,” said Cole earlier this week.
“This season we haven’t started the way we would have liked but take nothing away from Ole.
“Ultimately, at the back end of last season nobody thought they would finish in the top four. That’s down to the manager galvanising the players to do just that.”
Off the pitch, the English giants posted an operating loss of £27 million (S$47.9 million), largely due to the loss of matchday revenue with games being played behind closed doors.
Commercial revenue was also down 25 per cent due to the club not being able to go on a pre-season tour and a fall in merchandising sales from no fans on match days.
However, Woodward maintained that United are committed to helping lower league clubs through the coronavirus crisis.
Proposals for widespread reform of English football led by United and Liverpool were dismissed by other Premier League clubs for what was deemed a power grab by the biggest clubs.
“We recognise that not all football clubs are in as robust of a financial position and that the Premier League has a responsibility to support the wider English football pyramid,” added Woodward.
“We will continue to push for this support, both through emergency assistance during the pandemic, and through longer-term reforms to ensure that the success of the Premier League is reinforced for the benefit of the national game as a whole.”
REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE