'We are not happy' - Manchester United representative breaks silence on poor start to season

A Manchester United representative has admitted club chiefs are 'not happy' with the start to the 2024/25 season.

United entered the October international break sitting in 14th position and uncertainty surrounded Erik ten Hag after overseeing the club's worst start to a Premier League campaign. However, Ten Hag survived the two-week break to remain in charge against Brentford at the weekend and United secured a much-needed three points at Old Trafford.

Brentford took the lead on the stroke of half-time on Saturday afternoon, but United demonstrated character in the second half and claimed a 2-1 victory thanks to goals from Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund, which sealed the Reds' first league win since Southampton.

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United moved up to 11th in the table thanks to the weekend's win over Brentford and are now six points adrift of the Champions League places as the winter months approach.

Although there was intense scrutiny around Ten Hag during the international break, United did not comment on the situation and the Dutchman suggested it was business as usual at his pre-Brentford press conference, hitting out at 'fairy tale' stories about his future in the media.

United held a fans' forum meeting last week and Collette Roche, United's chief operating officer, provided a update on changes at board room level and performances on the pitch.

"I do want to give you an overview of what’s been happening at the club since we last met in July – because it’s been a period of significant change and transformation," said Roche. "Omar [Berrada] has arrived as CEO and Dan [Ashworth] has been settling in as sporting director and they’ve spent the summer putting new leadership structures in place and starting to set out a strategy for long-term success on and off the pitch.

"We have to acknowledge up front that this is not always an easy or straightforward process. On the pitch, you will all be well aware that it has been a difficult start to the season for the men’s first team.

"But everyone at Carrington is working hard to put things back on track with three-quarters of the season still to go. On the women’s side things have started a lot more brightly, with three wins out of three in the WSL so let’s hope we can keep that going.

"Off the pitch, you’ll know that we have been through a period of restructuring that has seen us say farewell to approximately 250 colleagues. That has been a difficult process, but we would not have done it if we did not feel it was necessary.

"The truth is that, even though we are generating record revenues which are among the highest in European football, we have still been losing money. That is not a sustainable situation.

"So we’ve taken action to identify areas where we can increase efficiency. That will help ensure that we remain compliant with UEFA and Premier League financial sustainability rules, while continuing to invest in success on the pitch."

Later in the fans' forum, a supporter asked: "What do the club put the start to the season down to? In the past, John Murtough would give a debrief around the football side of things."

Toby Craig joined United from Chelsea to become chief communications officer at Old Trafford in the summer and he admitted performances haven't been good enough this term.

"Clearly we are not happy with the men’s first team’s start to the season and results are not where we want them to be. There is a huge amount of change going on," said Craig.

"We believe we came out of the summer transfer window with a stronger squad, but it’s one that is still evolving with a number of younger players who will keep getting better.

"So there have been changes on the pitch, but also off the pitch with Dan Ashworth and Jason Wilcox joining the club. They are transforming our sporting structure off the pitch.

"We know there’s still a lot to do. The women’s first team has started its season well, with a 100% record so far in the WSL. Whilst the main focus of the fans’ forum has always been on fan issues, we will endeavour to keep the forum briefed on football developments and provide access to football leadership from time to time."