Manchester United training ground turned 'toxic' by furious Sir Jim Ratcliffe email
Staff members at Manchester United have been left enraged by an email from the club’s new part-owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
The Ineos chief, 71, acquired a 25 per cent stake in his boyhood club earlier this season and has already implemented sweeping changes behind the scenes since the deal, which gives him and his team control of sporting operations, was signed off.
While Ratcliffe’s arrival has been broadly welcomed by the majority of people affiliated with the club, it now seems as the British billionaire has ruffled feathers after sending an email to staff telling them to clean up their act.
The email, which saw Ratcliffe brand some areas of the club’s training ground and Old Trafford “a disgrace”, has not gone down well in some quarters, with The Sun claiming the memo has turned the atmosphere at Carrington “toxic”.
In the email, Ratcliffe wrote: “I had a good tour around the some of the facilities. 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.
“These standards would not come close to what we would expect at INEOS and we are a chemical company. Manchester United is an elite sporting organisation. It’s a small thing in many ways but unless an organisation has standards and discipline it will not succeed.
“I would be grateful in future if we adopt the proper standards of housekeeping everywhere. It reflects poorly on the club if we have visitors, young player parents, new players and and the media and they see we don’t care enough to keep things shipshape.”
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Manchester United co-owners Avram Glazer (left) and Sir Jim Ratcliffe look on during the Emirates FA Cup Semi Final match between Coventry City and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium on April 21, 2024
Ratcliffe’s criticism of the the club’s facilities is not the only memo which has caused a stir within the walls of Carrington this week.
The Manchester United chief revealed to staff earlier this week that the current work-from-home policy, which was adopted by the club during the Covid-19 pandemic, would be coming to an end.
He then proceeded to make his position clear to anyone disgruntled employees, with The Guardian claiming he then said: “If you don’t like it, please seek alternative employment.”
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