Man Utd training ground turns ‘toxic’ after Ratcliffe slams ‘crap’ in club memo

The Manchester United training ground has turned ‘toxic’ after Sir Jim Ratcliffe criticised the ‘crap’ he saw on a tour of the club’s facilities.

Ratcliffe’s purchase of a 27.7 per cent stake in United initially ‘put a spring in in everyone’s step – but many of the staff have now lost their bounce’, according to The Sun.

Ratcliffe takes issue with ‘disgraceful’ facilities
The Ineos owner recently sent out a memo to all the United staff explaining his disappointemtn after a tour of the club’s training ground.

Ratcliffe said: “I am afraid I was struck in many places by a high degree of untidiness.

“In particular the IT department which frankly was a disgrace and the dressing rooms of the U18 and U21 were not much better.”

‘The email has not gone down well’ after Ratcliffe said the standards “would not come close” to what he’s used to at his chemical company.

The IT department – manned by young professionals at the bottom of the club’s pay grade being asked to do menial tasks – believe they ‘have been made scapegoats for a much larger club problem’, with the criticism ‘creating a toxic feeling inside Carrington’.

Manchester United’s ‘crap’ museum
The academy staff, used to being praised for their work to develop young stars, are instead being slammed for dirty changing rooms, and we imagine those involved in setting up and looking after the club museum weren’t hugely impressed by Ratcliffe describing it as ‘crap’.

The staff were recently told they wouldn’t be receiving free tickets, travel and lunch revoked for the FA Cup final to save money, with Ratcliffe also putting to an end the work-from-home culture, despite there not being enough room for everyone in the offices.

During a staff meeting last week employees were bluntly told by Ratcliffe: “If you don’t like it, please seek alternative employment.”

The Sun claim ‘this whole approach has not gone down well and many of the approximate 1,000 employees are concerned about their jobs’.

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Former Crystal Palace chariman Simon Jordan applauded Ratcliffe’s decision to order the club employees back into offices.

Jordan said: “Every grown-up knows that you get more effectiveness, more development of culture, more work ethic, more diversity of thinking, more diversity of experience if people are in a workplace.

“Those who don’t think that, they are the ones who want to work at home because it suits their lifestyle, and that’s fantastic. Life is like, I suppose, a bit of a poop sandwich, the more bread you make the less poop you eat.

“I normally use a different word there, but you see I’ve adapted it for the radio…

“You go to work to be successful, to have a better life out of it.

“There is no doubt in 95 per cent of professions that in order to achieve outcomes that develop the individual, to meet their expectations of the work environment and of course the business’ expectations of them, being present, where you can be monitored, trained, engaged and focussed on and have work disciplines, rather than ordering a Domino’s pizza, scratching your nuts and waiting for the Amazon delivery.

“That is not what the most sensible businessmen think is the way to operate.

“Well done Jim, because you need a culture and absolutely right, that shows the grown-up thinking going on… football should not be immune from it.

“Disciplines, focus, culture, outlook, work ethic, motivation – boom, it starts from there.”