United, who announced their latest financial results on
Tuesday, have endured another difficult season despite the return of superstar
forward Cristiano Ronaldo to Old Trafford.
A top-four finish is the best the English giants can hope
for domestically, but they only managed a draw against lowly Watford on Saturday
and are just two points ahead of West Ham and Arsenal — the Gunners also have
three games in hand.
United have a tough set of fixtures coming up, including
meetings with title-chasing Manchester City and Liverpool as well as the second
leg of their Champions League tie with Atletico Madrid, which is delicately
poised at 1-1.
The club, who have not won a trophy since 2017, have been
working under interim manager Ralf Rangnick since December when the German
succeeded Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after a poor start to the campaign.
Murtough said he had been heartened by the “improved
results” as they look to secure Champions League qualification.
“We know that consistency is key as we strive for a top-four
finish this season,” he said.
“I want to reiterate however that this is not the ultimate
objective for Manchester United, and everyone at the club is focused on
challenging for the top trophies.
“We are now conducting a thorough process for the
appointment of a new permanent manager who will take charge this summer, with
the objective to get us back to challenging for those domestic and European
titles.”
Paris Saint-Germain boss Mauricio Pochettino and Ajax coach
Erik ten Hag are among the favourites to permanently succeed Solskjaer.
Richard Arnold echoed Murtough’s sentiments as the chief
executive commented publicly for the first time since taking up the role on
February 1, when executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward departed.
“We have a clear vision and we are implementing a strategy
to win with an empowered leadership team to drive that forward,” he said.
“We will foster a culture of excellence through a
world-class football environment while strengthening the role of fans at the
heart of the club.”
United’s second-quarter results for fiscal 2022, for the
period ending December 31, showed the club paid £10 million ($13.4 million) in
“exceptional items”, which included compensation to former manager Solskjaer
and certain members of the coaching staff.
The results show an operating profit of £5.4 million for the
quarter, with total revenue of £185.4 million — a 7.3 percent rise on the same
period the previous year, with crowds back in stadiums after the coronavirus
shutdown.
United’s net debt has increased to £494.8 million — up 8.6 percent
— and wages rose 19.6 percent to £97.7 million “due to investment in the first
team playing squad”.
AFP
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