Manchester United’s players will do a lap of honour at the end of their final home game of the season against Brentford tonight.
United are limping to the end of a dreadful season which will see them finish a fifth successive campaign without any silverware. Ralf Rangnick’s beleaguered side, who have won just two of their last 11 matches, need to win all three of their remaining games in order to match their worst ever Premier League points tally.
Nevertheless, according to The Daily Mail , United will carry on the tradition of wandering around the pitch after the final home match of the season to applaud the fans for their support throughout the season. The club are understood to feel they are in a lose-lose situation, knowing that if they don’t maintain the tradition they will be at risk of appearing to snub the fans, while doing it could backfire.
The decision from the club’s hierarchy risks aggravating some supporters who have frequently voiced their displeasure with results that have left United in sixth place, with just 55 points from 35 games. Rangnick has been unable to turn things around after taking the reins on an interim basis from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in November.
Ironically, any unpleasant scenes after the conclusion of Monday's 8pm kick-off may be saved by the fact that a group of United fans will be busy protesting against another aspect of the club’s demise. The last two games at Old Trafford have been notable for their protests against the club’s owners, the Glazer family.
Another anti-Glazer protest is planned for the Brentford game, with fans being urged to leave their seats in the 73rd minute and therefore boycott the final 17 minutes of the game – one for every year of the Glazers’ ownership. It is entirely likely, therefore, that United might carry out their lap of applause to half-empty stands.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Manchester United abandon plans for a lap of honour? Comment below.
While the Glazers remain the main lightning rod for criticism from fed-up United fans, the players have not escaped their ire either. Furious chants against their own players have frequently been heard inside Old Trafford this season, while a banner reading “Disgrace – you’re not fit to wear the shirt”, has also been seen.
Regardless of the results, the final three games of the season will be the end of an era for United, with Rangnick and several players moving on before Erik ten Hag’s arrival from Ajax. Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Edinson Cavani, Juan Mata and Nemanja Matic are all expected to leave when their contracts expire on July 1.
Meanwhile, there are doubts over Dean Henderson, Eric Bailly, Anthony Martial, Phil Jones and Aaron Wan-Bissaka, with Ten Hag being given a transfer budget of £100million to overhaul the drastically underachieving playing squad.
