Manchester United's rivals are looking to take advantage of their financial crisis by buying out sell-on clauses in contracts.
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Rivals offering to buy sell-on clausesUnited in desperate financial needAmorim says team to blame for job lossesFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
United announced on Monday that up to 200 employees could lose their jobs in a second round of redundancies in a bid to ease the club's financial troubles after making losses of a combined £370 million ($468m) over the last five years. The redundancies form part of Sir Jim Ratcliffe's 'transformation plan' which also included measures such as ending free lunches for staff and scaling back the club's London office.
AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Rivals can sense that the Red Devils are getting desperate for money and, according to , a number of clubs are planning on offering to buy out sell-on clauses in contracts of former players. United, like many clubs, include sell-on clauses in deals when they sell players, meaning they can earn a windfall when the player is sold further down the line. United included a 50 percent sell-on clause in the deal to sell Mason Greenwood to Marseille last summer and a clause of the same amount when Hannibal Mejbri joined Burnley. The sell-on clauses offer United the hope of long-term earnings but the amount of money received is determined by how successful the transfer proves. It is thought, therefore, that United could accept a lower amount of up-front cash in exchange for doing away with the clauses. Meanwhile, United coach Ruben Amorim has stressed that the team are to blame for the financial crisis which has led to the job losses.
WHAT AMORIM SAID
"We have to address all the problems in the club but one important piece is how we got into this situation. It has to do a lot with the lack of success of the football team," Amorim told a press conference. "We are the engine of the club. I want to help the team with my job which is to help the team, help the players and the success. It's always hard for everybody. They see their friends and teammates losing their jobs but again, I have to focus on what I can do to help the club in this moment and we as a club have to understand what we did wrong to get in this situation."
GettyWHAT NEXT FOR MAN UTD?
The Red Devils are searching for a first league win since January when they host Ipswich Town in the Premier League on Wednesday. Amorim said: "Since I arrived, I expect to win all the games at home. I don't feel the pressure because I don't feel it – the supporters are amazing. Every time you go to Old Trafford you feel the support until the end. I don't feel the pressure and we have to stop and think about the last game. It's a new game and it can be a new story."
