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Manchester United have no European football this season, which means fixture congestion is not a problem they will face this term.
Following their humiliating EFL Cup second-round exit, the Red Devils will now have only one mid-week fixture before Christmas.
That means more time on the training pitch for Ruben Amorim, but the lack of games both in the cup and in Europe means a huge revenue shortfall.
Last season, Sir Jim Ratcliffe had spoken of the financial difficulties staring the club in the face, which forced the co-owners to cut jobs.
Lucrative mid-season plan in the offing
INEOS also arranged a post-season tour of Asia, which not too many players were happy with, but it did help raise £7.8 million. And this campaign, the club could partake in mid-season friendlies abroad to boost their cash reserves as per The Sun.
The 20-time English league champions are in talks with several clubs in Europe, including AC Milan, RB Leipzig, Lazio and Sevilla, who are all in the same boat as the Old Trafford side.
“Manchester United could use midweek friendlies abroad to help fill the club’s financial blackhole after failing to qualify for Europe this season.
“United’s failure to qualify for Europe, followed by their shock Carabao Cup exit at Grimsby means the Old Trafford side have just ONE midweek fixture – the December 3 home game with West Ham – before Christmas.
“But SunSport can exclusively reveal that Ruben Amorim’s side might make the most of their extra preparation time by facing off against a host of top European sides in a string of mid-season friendlies.
How will players react?
“With United potentially having eight days between Prem games outside of the three autumn international breaks, semi-competitive friendlies could give the squad a chance to prepare for more high-quality football.
“The Premier League strugglers could set up matches against the likes of AC Milan, RB Leipzig, Lazio and Sevilla – who all failed to secure European football this term.”
While these matches would provide the fringe players and the recently-recovered players the chance to get minutes into their legs, it poses a serious injury risk to key players.
Sponsorship reasons often dictates team selection during such games, and it will be interesting to see how Amorim and his players react if such a move is indeed greenlit by INEOS.
Feature image Justin Setterfield via Getty Images
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