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konartis wrote:#youngout
Today is a fantastic day for Manchester United. Louis van Gaal is a great appointment and let me begin by telling you how delighted I am to be working with someone of his calibre. His credentials are second to none and I’m positive the club will thrive under his leadership over the coming years.
I would also like to take this opportunity to announce my retirement from professional football and embark upon a new and exciting chapter in my life, as assistant manager of Manchester United. I am immensely proud, honoured and fortunate to have represented the biggest club in the world 963 times and Wales 64 times. My dream was always to play for Manchester United, and although it saddens me to know I won’t be pulling on a United jersey again as a player, I have been lucky enough to have fulfilled that dream playing with some of the best players in the world, working under an incredible manager in Sir Alex Ferguson, and most of all, playing for the greatest fans in world football. I have always felt and appreciated your support.
I want to also give a huge thanks to the backroom staff and support teams we have and have had at Manchester United over the years. I would not have achieved the success I have without your continuing dedication and commitment to creating the best environment to enable the players to thrive. I would not have won 34 trophies in my career without you. I would also like to say a special thanks to my friends and family for all your love and support.
For me, today is a new chapter filled with many emotions - immense pride, sadness, but most of all, excitement towards the future. United fans I hope will share and echo my belief that the club, the management and owners, are doing everything they can to return this great club to where it belongs, and I hope to be there every step of the way. To the greatest fans in world football, thank you, I have loved every minute of playing for you and representing the biggest and best club in the world.
See you next season.
Ryan
Manchester United owner Malcolm Glazer has died at the age of 86.
The Glazer family purchased United for £790m in May 2005 amid protests from the Premier League club's fans.
However, the Red Devils went on to win five Premier League titles under his ownership, as well as the 2008 Champions League.
The New York-born American's sons, Bryan, Joel and Avram, are all on the United board, with the latter two co-chairmen of the club.
"The thoughts of everyone at Manchester United are with his family tonight," said a spokesman for the Premier League club.
The Glazer family retain a 90% share in the club - split equally among the six Glazer children - with 10% listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Glazer's takeover of United was largely funded by loans secured against the club's assets, a move that sat uneasily with many fans at Old Trafford.
Supporters' group Shareholders United were one of the most vociferous anti-Glazer voices during the takeover, and in the aftermath.
In 2010, a group of lifelong United fans made up of City bankers and lawyers set up the Red Knights consortium in an attempt to buy the club with the support of fans, but their plans failed.
Glazer was also the owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, turning the American football franchise into Super Bowl winners following his takeover in 1995.
Swisha wrote:oh geed, that worse than d tablecloth
Allergic2BunnyEars wrote:Swisha wrote:oh geed, that worse than d tablecloth
That sponsor logo alone is enough to not buy Man Utd jerseys for years.
Dizzy28 wrote:Allergic2BunnyEars wrote:Swisha wrote:oh geed, that worse than d tablecloth
That sponsor logo alone is enough to not buy Man Utd jerseys for years.
I assume you only support VFL Wolfsburg??
Sportswear giant Adidas has signed a £750m deal to make Manchester United's kit for 10 years from next season.
It comes after US rival Nike decided to end its association at the end of the 2014-15 season.
Nike has been paying United £23.5m a year, and the new deal is worth a world record-breaking £75m ($128m) a season to the Old Trafford club.
Champions League winner Real Madrid's £31m-a-year deal with Adidas was previously the biggest club deal.
Adidas will provide training and playing kit to all the club's teams and will have the exclusive right to distribute dual-branded merchandising products worldwide.
The huge sum involved is only £40m less than the Glazer family paid for the club in 2005.
Adidas chief executive Herbert Hainer said the deal would help the firm "to further strengthen our position in key markets around the world".
He added: "We expect total sales to reach £1.5bn during the duration of our partnership."
Adidas has not given any details about the design of the new strip but said they may look to the Manchester United kits of the 1980s and early 1990s for inspiration.
It will be the first time Adidas has made the Premier League's team's strip in 23 years, since the 1991-92 season.
The announcement comes a day after the German firm, a Fifa World Cup sponsor, provided the kit for 2014 finalists Germany and Argentina.
In trading on the German stock exchange on Monday, the firm's shares closed up by 2.73%.
Adidas also supplies Bayern Munich, Chelsea, AC Milan and Flamengo. From the 2015-16 season, they will also provide kit for Juventus.
Sean Hamil, director of the Sport Business Centre at London's Birkbeck College, said that the Glazers had put in place "an exceptional marketing and sponsorship team", although they had taken flak for the way they had put debt onto the club's books and for increasing season ticket prices.
He said: "They have been able to secure this landmark deal in the sector, against the background of no Champions League football next season. This is clearly a major vote of confidence in the Manchester United brand.
"Also, it shows that leading English clubs are sufficiently robust in terms of global appeal that sponsors are making value decisions based on the long term and not just around one season."
Dr Leah Donlan, a marketing expert at Manchester Business School, said the deal will give Adidas "a significant competitive advantage" over Nike.
She added that Adidas could "strengthen its global brand position" by adding Manchester United to its portfolio of teams.
Nike had been given a period of exclusivity to negotiate an extension with United and also retained the right to match any other offer.
But the company decided against exercising either option, claiming the terms "did not represent good value for Nike's shareholders".
Manchester United suffered their worst Premier League finish to date last season after manager Sir Alex Ferguson left following 26 years in the job.
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