Justin Smith

Manchester United need to be freed of the yoke of the Glazers. That’s obvious. Been saying it since 2005. But how? It’s difficult to force regime change. A few United fans suggesting they’d welcome relegation as it would make the Glazers consider selling up. It might make them more likely to hold on as a PL club worth far more than EFL. A few fans suggesting a boycott of games - but why should loyal fans stop watching their team? And the club could simply get tourists in if a few games missed. A boycott of the megastore and catering is obvious (and already done by some fans) but that would also hit staff and temporary workers. Chants and banners make a point to the world how reviled the absentee Glazers are. But probably won’t worry the distant Glazers. They can point to money invested in transfers (and spent badly) but it’s not their personal money. It’s money generated by the fans. United have some very influential fans’ groups, fanzines, forums and pods. Would lobbying the Independent Football Regulator about whether the Glazers are “fit and proper owners” (in old parlance) have any effect? At the very least, there is a strong case for lobbying the IFR and Government about updating legislation to preclude debt-based takeovers (the IFR has an advisory role to Parliament). It’s certainly a national embarrassment that the most high-profile representative of the national sport has such substantial debt and such deeply unpopular owners associated with it. Sadly, like a stubborn stain, the Glazers will take some shifting. #MUFC