Manchester United chief executive Omar Berrada has told staff that the aim is to win the Premier League title in 2028, for the 150th anniversary of the club being formed.
Berrada, who officially joined from rivals Manchester City in June, addressed employees during a meeting at Old Trafford last Wednesday and mapped out the ambitions shared by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the football hierarchy.
Berrada informed staff of “Project 150” — so called because it coincides with the major milestone of United’s existence. The club was founded, as Newton Heath, in 1878, before changing its name to Manchester United in 1902.
That defined goal puts into context the work required on the team, with United currently 11th in the Premier League after two wins, one draw and two defeats. United also drew their opening game in the Europa League to FC Twente, the lowest-ranked side they will face at Old Trafford in the competition.
Berrada also spoke about the women’s team winning their first title by that year, in equal prominence. He tried to strike an aspirational tone, accepting it would take lots of hard work, rather than come across bullish.
GO DEEPER
Ten Hag questions Man Utd mentality: ‘We were too easy going’
Berrada’s bold statements were received by an audience of staffers in a mixed mood in the wake of the the job cuts that are seeing the 1,000-strong workforce reduced by a quarter. People who have been at the club for several years have departed, prompting feelings of upset and despondency, while others are energised at the prospect of the club becoming more driven by sporting objectives.
Ratcliffe’s arrival triggered the redundancies as a means of saving money the club says, but his main motivation is on United winning major silverware again. In his first round of media interviews in February after securing his 27.7 per cent investment he brought up the 150-year anniversary.
“It’s not a 10-year plan. The fans would run out of patience if it was a 10-year plan. But it’s certainly a three-year plan to get there,” he said.
“To think that we’re going to be playing football as good as Manchester City played against Real Madrid last season by next year is not sensible. And if we give people false expectations, then they will get disappointed. So the key thing is our trajectory, so that people can see that we’re making progress.
United’s new hierarchy have mapped out their ambitions (Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)
“I think it’s the club’s 150-year anniversary in 2028… if our trajectory is leading to a very good place in that sort of timeframe then we’d be very happy with that. Because it’s not easy to turn Manchester United into the world’s best football team.
“The ultimate target for Manchester United — and it’s always going to be thus, really — is that we should be challenging for the Premier League and challenging for the Champions League. It’s one of the biggest clubs in the world.”
Ahead of the Liverpool game earlier this month, which United lost 3-0, Berrada and Dan Ashworth, the club’s newly-appointed sporting director, addressed the media.
“Erik has our full backing and we have worked very closely together in this transfer window,” Berrada said. “We’re going to continue working very closely with him to help him get the best results out of the team. Do we still believe in Erik? Absolutely. We think Erik is the right coach for us and we’re fully backing him.”
Speaking before United’s return to Premier League action against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, Ten Hag said: “We are working and progressing. We have to sign players but we made a choice to sign very young players.
“Last year (Rasmus) Hojlund, this year (Joshua) Zirkzee, Leny Yoro. We believe in them, this moment and also for the future, and we have to build them. We have to work with the squad and that takes time.
“Also I am impatient and I want to go straight forward but also we had success in the last two seasons and we have to work hard to bring more success.”
GO DEEPER
Analysing Ashworth and Berrada’s Man Utd transfer briefing – ‘Erik has our full backing’
(Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images)