Manchester United fans may have nicknamed the City of
Manchester Stadium the “Council House” – but the Reds were once
offered the chance of making Eastlands their home.
United were approached about the possibility of returning to
their roots in the east of the city when Manchester was awarded the
2002 Commonwealth Games, according to a new book.
It was only the intervention of Sir Alex Ferguson that halted
the plan – even though Manchester city council were prepared to
build an 80,000-capacity stadium to bring the club back to the city
of their birth.
Author Gary James unearthed the astonishing blueprint to take
United back into Manchester from Trafford for the updated version
of his book ‘Manchester – A Football History.’
James reveals how United were tempted to quit Old Trafford
because the famous old stadium could not meet demand for tickets in
the late 1990s with its 55,000 capacity.
A contingency plan was even put in place that would allow
United to only play big Champions League fixtures at the new
stadium.
Labour MP Graham Stringer, who was leader of Manchester City
Council at the time, is quoted as saying: “Discussions with United
were serious and went to a high level – the highest level.
“The view was that if United could move to the stadium then the
capacity could be around 80,000.
“It seemed perfectly logical in the 90s that United should
consider the move. Of course, there were some significant issues to
overcome.
“The biggest was undoubtedly the significance of Old Trafford
to supporters.
“I fully understand why United decided not to make a permanent
move, but Old Trafford’s capacity was too small. The idea
developed that perhaps European games could be played at the new
stadium.
“United would play at Old Trafford for domestic fixtures and
move to the new stadium for European games.”
Ferguson, though, felt the plan would backfire – as it did on
Arsenal when they took Champions League games to Wembley from
Highbury to attract bigger crowds.
Stringer adds: “Alex Ferguson was involved in the discussions
and I think he, quite rightly, considered the impact on
players.
“The possibility of switching venue every few days could
possibly disrupt players.” City moved to Eastlands in 2003 after
spending 80 years at Maine Road.
Having such a state-of-the-art stadium was a big attraction to
Sheikh Mansour when he instantly made City the richest club in the
world with his 2008 takeover.
But the council plot will come as a big shock to both Reds and
Blues in Manchester.
United supporters, who were founded as Newton Heath, ridicule
City for having a 48,000-capacity stadium that is still owned by
the council.
But City fans revel in the fact Old Trafford is situated outside
Manchester city boundaries – the reason why the ‘Welcome to
Manchester’ poster designed when Carlos Tevez joined the club from
United caused such a stir.