On Saturday afternoon, Manchester United chief executive Richard Arnold met with fan protesters at a pub in an attempt to defuse tensions over the club’s direction.
A group of United supporters planned to demonstrate outside Arnold’s house, but they were stopped by the man himself at a local pub where they had agreed to meet beforehand. He then took questions from the audience, which helped to defuse the situation, and the protest was called off.
Arnold was heard discussing a number of issues, including the Glazer family’s ownership and the status of United’s attempts to sign Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong, among other things, in videos posted to Twitter.
Some attendees have expressed dissatisfaction with some of the responses, but Arnold, who took over from Ed Woodward in February, appears to have earned the protesters’ respect by confronting them and answering their questions.
Arnold is ‘far, far better than Woodward and will do a better job,’ according to one of those present on Twitter. They were convinced, however, that he was still ‘protecting the Glazers,’ and that he was approaching the situation “like a true politician.”
“He’s basically asking for a clean slate because he’s just started his role. He’s saying that none of the last 17 years is his fault,” another fan said.
