Krishnan Sreekumar
Manchester United fans plan Old Trafford protest against the Glazers before Norwich clash
According to Manchester United supporter group The 1958 on Twitter, a protest is being planned outside Old Trafford ahead of the Norwich clash in the Premier League as a statement made against the club owners, the Glazers (h/t Daily Mail).
The Glazers have long been admonished by United fans for treating the club as a cash cow, using it as a means to make more money while leaving the opinion and voice of the supporters out. There is strong resentment from the Manchester faithful that the owners are not committed to their side.
Protests have been held against the American owners before as well, with the supporters critical of their refusal to connect with fans or leave behind a legacy. In recent times, given the lack of trophies won by the team despite heavy spending, the resentment by the fans has increased.
In the latest of these fan protests, The 1958 has called upon fans of the club to come in support of an organised march before the Norwich game from Tollgate to Sir Matt Busby Way to act and raise awareness against the ill-effects of the Glazers ruling the side.
“This isn’t another Liverpool”
As part of a larger symbolic gesture, the fan group are planning a rally where demonstrators will remain outside the Theatre of Dreams for the first 17 minutes of the match to mark the Glazer family’s 17-year ownership.
The message from The 1958 insisted that this is the start of constant, relentless, peaceful, and legal protests and actions planned against the Glazers, saying that would not waver or detract from their aim.
“This isn’t another Liverpool. We believe this was a one-off unique event. This is the start of the constant, relentless, peaceful and legal protests and actions against our owners. We know the challenges ahead of us and we will not waver or detract from these goals.”
The statement from the group was strongly-worded, saying that “nothing will change until the head of the snake is removed”, hinting at the Glazers’ ownership. Evidently, fans are not happy with how the club is being run, or what direction the team were heading in since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013.
A year ago, this month, the Glazers had to endure an angry backlash after the Americans announced their intention of joining the European Super League. Old Trafford witnessed a mass protest, where supporters broke into the stadium to make their message clear.
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Another intention stated by The 1958 was about how they did not want the Red Devils to be another Liverpool, hinting at the long period of mediocrity suffered by the Merseyside club until the arrival of Jurgen Klopp changed that in the last decade.
The supporters’ group clearly believe that mediocrity at Man United cannot be accepted, and change will need to be brought immediately. To begin with, a new change is expected in the summer when a permanent manager will be brought in to replace the sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, in order to usher in a new era of success at the club. It remains to be seen if the new boss is able to deliver trophies, and whether fans will cool their anger against the Glazers.
