Ed Woodward has admitted that Manchester United’s transfer activity won’t be ‘business as usual’ this summer due to the financial uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The killer virus has put a halt to all Premier League action for the foreseeable future, with top-flight clubs unable to train or play matches until it is deemed safe to do so.
The Red Devils have outlined Borussia Dortmund wonderkid Jadon Sancho as one of their top priority signings for the next transfer window, but his £120million price tag may prove a major stumbling block.
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Speaking at a fans’ forum on Friday, Woodward said: ‘We have always believed that our commercial model gives us greater resilience than most clubs and we are grateful for the enduring support of our commercial partners in helping us achieve that.
‘However, nobody should be under any illusions about the scale of challenge facing everyone in football and it may not be ‘business as usual’ for any clubs, including ourselves, in the transfer market this summer.
‘As ever our priority is the success of team, but we need visibility of the impact across the whole industry, including timings of the transfer window, and the wider financial picture, before we can talk about a return to normality.
‘On this basis, I cannot help feeling that speculation around transfers of individual players for hundreds of millions of pounds this summer seems to ignore the realities that face the sport.’
Premier League clubs are committed to seeing out the remaining fixtures of the current campaign, but will likely do so behind closed doors without any fans.
Before the season was postponed, United were on an 11-match unbeaten run in all competitions, and Woodward is eager for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side to carry on their good form.
‘Like all of you, we are eager to see the team return to the field as soon as we are advised it is safe to do so, hopefully to complete a season which still held so much promise for us in the Premier League, the Europa League and the FA Cup when it was suspended,’ he continued.
‘And while it may be that games need to be played behind closed doors in the shorter term, we all recognise that football will not be fully back to normal until supporters are once again in attendance.’
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