Ratcliffe warns 'unpopular decisions' needed for 'mediocre' Man Utd

Manchester United owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has warned that "difficult and unpopular decisions" are required to transform the club back into an English powerhouse after he received criticism for his ticket pricing.

The INEOS chief's decision to hike prices at Old Trafford prompted backlash prior to the club's clash with Everton last weekend, but Ratcliffe stood by the increase.

"Manchester United has become mediocre," he said in a recent interview. "It is supposed to be one of the best football clubs in the world.

"We have to make some difficult and unpopular decisions. If you shy away from the difficult decisions, then nothing much is going to change.

"I know we get criticism in the press but we do need to challenge the cost of running this club because what I want to be free for us to do is buy really good footballers, not spend so much of the money on infrastructure," he said.

"We can't run a business at a loss, which is where United have been in the last couple of years. If you are losing money you have to borrow from the bank to pay for the losses. Eventually that becomes unsustainable.

"I don't want to end up in a position where the genuine local fans can't afford to come but I do want to optimise the ticketing.

"We need to find a balance - and you can't be popular all the time either. Here, we are talking about 3% of the tickets. I don't think it makes sense for a Manchester United ticket to cost less than a ticket to see Fulham."

According to released financials, the club's total losses from the last five years are over £370m.

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