‘What an insult’
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has further alienated fans with his latest comments about the Manchester United Women’s team.
When asked about his plans for Marc Skinner’s side in an interview with Bloomsberg Ratcliffe replied: “We haven’t got into that level of detail with the women’s team yet. We’ve been pretty much focused on how we resolve the first team issues.”
Fans took to Twitter to vent their frustration at Ratcliffe’s perceived lack of ambition for the side who lifted their first major trophy back in May when they won the Adobe Women’s FA Cup.
One fan said: “You can focus on both teams literally, it’s not like it takes tons of millions to upgrade the women’s team.”
While another said: “So the women are an afterthought?”
However, many fans jumped to Ratcliffe’s defence: “Living in the real world, this was always going to be the case. Need to get the cash cow in order first before looking at anything else.”
It was the language he used that the majority took offence to as opposed to his lack of plans for Skinner’s side.
BBC journalist Emma Sanders said: “The language used here doesn’t reflect well. This is still an issue across the sport. The men’s teams are often described as the “first team” to those who don’t subconsciously see them on an even billing. There are two first teams at Man Utd.”
“’Focusing on the first team’?! Jezuuusss… what an insult,” one fan replied, whilst another said: “He’s just as bad as the Glazers.”
The Glazers disbanded the women’s team in 2005, only reforming in 2018 and have been criticised on a number of occasions since then for the lack of desire to invest in the team and its facilities, something which they have begun to resolve in the last two years.
Ratcliffe’s use of language does not seem to be an opinion held by the rest of the club, in the last few years the club website has been changed to reflect their stance that the two sides are equal, changing the wording from ‘First team’ to ‘Men’s’ in the navigation bar.
It is not the first time Sir Jim has received backlash from fans of the women’s game, he was noticeably absent from Wembley when Skinner’s side lifted the FA Cup trophy after beating Tottenham Hotspur 4-0 in the final.
The latest comments will have fans worried, especially since a number of key players are out of contract at the end of the month and rumours about their imminent departure have been met with silence from the club.
England shot-stopper and current FIFA World Best Goalkeeper Mary Eraps has reportedly been in contract negotiations for the best part of a year but as yet no deal has been made. A move to WSL rivals Arsenal or French giants PSG looks increasingly more likely. In an interview with Sky Sports recently, Earps said she would not make an emotional decision about her future with the club and that she wanted “confirmation on what they [United] are trying to achieve”.
Captain Katie Zelem, who has been at the club since it reformed in 2018, is linked with a move abroad at the end of the month, whilst Lucia Garcia, who scored twice in that FA Cup final looks set to go to Mexico.
