Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward faced some difficult questions from investors on Thursday, particularly about the club’s transfers.
United announced record revenue in their quarterly report, as Woodward hosted a conference call with a number of the club’s influential sponsors and was praised for pushing them towards annual earnings of half a billion pounds.
However, although the figures certainly looked good, there wasn’t the same amount of optimism regarding the club’s performances on the pitch and the way in which they are investing that income in the current squad.
United are currently fifth in the Premier League table and face the real threat of missing out on the Champions League. With Leicester City currently leading the way with a five-point gap at the top, Woodward was asked questions about how the Foxes were able to be so successful on a transfer budget nowhere near the one that United have had in spending £95m last summer.
“Some players are bought by other clubs with an eye to them developing into something special in a few years’ time,” he said, as reported by Sky Sports.
“There’s a bit more pressure on some of the other clubs to bring in players who are going to hit the ground running and be top players, verging on world-class almost immediately.
“So there is a slightly different market in which people are buying. Leicester is a fantastic reference point for everybody this year.”