Manchester United say they are ready to welcome fans back at Old Trafford the moment the government gives a green light.
Manchester United are stepping up their efforts as they get ready for the return of fans in stadiums.
It feels like an eternity since fans in England were graced with the ‘normalcy’ of watching games at stadiums.
The last time Manchester United had fans at Old Trafford goes all the way back to March.
There were plans for fans to return to stadiums in October but they were cancelled by the UK Government after the resurgence of Covid-19 cases.
Regardless, clubs have been showing how they can welcome fans back safely by inviting them to come to grounds and watch the game on screens inside. The likes of Arsenal, Tottenham and Millwall have all done so.
Manchester United have now declared their intention to welcome fans back as soon as the Government allows them to.
Collette Roche, Manchester’s United chief operating officer, said the club had put plans in place to make Old Trafford as safe as possible for fans when they are allowed back.
“We were really disappointed when the government decided not to allow fans back in the stadium in October because we’ve got everything in place to make sure we can do so safely,” Roche said as per the club’s website.
Speaking inside Old Trafford ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League tie against RB Leipzig, Roche said: “As you have seen today, we’ve got all the COVID security measures and other processes ready to go.”
“Manchester United spent around two months working with the government guidelines to develop the right processes and measures to make sure that we can have around 23,500 people in this stadium safely social distancing.”
Health continues to remain the priority but Roche also said that football fans must not be treated differently from other people.
“It’s quite bemusing to understand why people can gather in other settings such as on an aeroplane or a restaurant, or even in a cinema to watch football, when we know we’ve got the plans and the process is ready to deliver a match day here safely,” she added.
“The government gave us guidelines and it’s those guidelines that we have followed and I’m convinced that would be able to do so safely.”
Once the all-clear is given to clubs to welcome fans, United could well be one of the very first set of sides to being back spectators in stadiums.
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