Sunday’s big fixture Manchester United Vs Liverpool was postponed due to United’s fans protesting against the owners of the club. Around 200 fans entered Old Trafford and protested against the Glazer family’s ownership of the club. The fixture was scheduled to kick off at 15:30 GMT.
The protesters had majorly 2 concerns. Firstly, they were angry with the Glazers for their involvement in the European Super League. Secondly, they wanted that the club should be made public and fans should have the opportunity to buy shares in the club and have a say in the decisions.
Neville had a close-up view of the protests having been inside the stadium, even exchanging words with a number of the fans, and the Ex-United Right Back gave his full backing to the protests. Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: “I’ve never thought they were brilliant owners but I’ve always thought within football there are worse owners than the Glazer family. However, I think all football fans should unite today behind what Manchester United fans have done because honestly what [the Glazers] did two weeks ago was really dangerous for English football – we must not forget that.”
“They tried to walk away and create a closed-shop league that would have basically created a famine – a famine – in this country for every other football club. They tried to create a famine in English football, in Dutch football, in German football, in French football, all over Europe. Those 15 clubs would have walked away from their leagues with that money and basically destroyed the ethos of the pyramid of relegation and promotion in English football. So that’s number one: it’s unforgivable what they did as a family two weeks ago.”
“Let’s not forget what we’re arguing about here. Today there is anger, I would hope tomorrow it switches to mobilisation towards reform and regulation and behind a fan-led review. When I talked two weeks ago about these two football clubs, Manchester United and Liverpool, they should act like the grandfathers of English football, demonstrating compassion, spreading the wealth through the football family, their experience, being fair.”
“They haven’t done. They’ve demonstrated self-greed and tried to walk away with all the money themselves and left the [football] family struggling below. That is not what you do at this football club or Liverpool football club. So, whether the Glazer family have been good or bad, what they did two weeks ago is not acceptable and an apology is not good enough.”
“Joel Glazer saying he wants to rebuild the trust with the football fans at this club: he never had the trust! He’s never communicated to them, he’s never spoken to them, he’s never said a word. So today we can be angry, the game may not go ahead, the fans are angry. But they’ve protested peacefully and we have to accept that you’re allowed to protest in this country and it’s every person’s right. But tomorrow it’s about reform and regulation because there are six or seven people within English football who have it under their control and that control has to be taken away from them.”
