David Gill is to stand down as Manchester United chief executive in June. Chartered accountant Gill joined the club as finance director in 1997 and became chief executive in 2003, He will stay on as a director. In response to the news Manchester United Supporters’ Trust (NUST) Chief Executive, Duncan Drasdo said:
David Gill is to stand down as Manchester United chief executive in June. Chartered accountant Gill joined the club as finance director in 1997 and became chief executive in 2003, He will stay on as a director. In response to the news Manchester United Supporters’ Trust (NUST) Chief Executive, Duncan Drasdo said:
‘While opinion is split among United fans on David Gill, you can’t argue with the fact that his period as CEO has coincided with our greatest period of success on the pitch. The manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, has in large part driven that, but we have to commend the work of the commercial team off the pitch too and of course the all to often overlooked role of the support of loyal Manchester United fans.’
‘We’ve had a long relationship with David Gill although for the last 8 years, regrettably, there has been no direct dialogue. Prior to the Glazers’ takeover MUST had a very good working relationship and on a personal level we liked and respected him but despite his initial strong resistance when the crunch came we ended up on opposite sides of the takeover barricade.’
‘Undoubtedly many fans were unhappy that he didn’t stand down on principle and appeared to make a u-turn on his previously vehement opposition to loading debt onto our club. Presumably he balanced up principle versus pragmatism and then made his decision and whether we agreed with that or not it should not prevent proper recognition of his major contribution to Manchester United Football Club.’
MUST clearly have hopes of opening a new chapter with Gill’s successor, Edmund Woodward, currentky executive vice-chairman. However, football journalist David Conn has pointed out that he comes from the commercial side of the operation, whilst Gill always had a regard for the football side.
Woodward is a trusted adviser of the Glazer family and will tighten their grip on the day-to-day running of the club. His appointment will break down some of the barriers between the owners and the operational side of the club, where the chief executive is heavily involved in matters such as negotiating transfer fees and players’ salaries.