Sir Jim Ratcliffe urged to DEMOLISH Old Trafford as architect promises ‘really innovative and exciting’ £2BILLION ground

SIR JIM RATCLIFFE has been urged to DEMOLISH Old Trafford following his acquisition of 25 per cent of the club.

The British billionaire’s deal to take over the football operations of the club was announced on Christmas Eve.

Reuters

Sir Jim Ratcliffe will has bought 25 per cent of Manchester United[/caption]

EPA

He will have to deal with Old Trafford[/caption]

As a result the club’s share price has risen by four per cent and entire value with it.

Ratcliffe and INEOS will be put to work immediately as one of the first jobs will be sorting out Old Trafford.

The historic ground was first opened in 1910 and was last renovated in 2006.

In recent years it has become clear that work is needed on the ground with roof leaks being filmed by fans.

Architectural design firm Populous have put together three plans for the outdated stadium.

The first is a small makeover project, the second is to expand the south stand and redevelop the rest of the ground.

The last option is to demolish the entire ground and build a completely new and modern replacement.

Populous chief executive Chris Lee believes that the third option is the best one for Ratcliffe to pursue.

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Lee has insisted that building a new ground could give the club the chance to be “innovative and exciting”.

He told The Telegraph: “Well, I would say this wouldn’t I, but I feel the new build may well turn out to be the most cost-effective solution.

“Yes, the initial outlay is obviously the highest of the three possible options, but there is so much land available to develop there.

“They [United] could carry on using the existing ground while building work is underway, meaning no decline in matchday revenues.

“Architecturally, in the space available, you could do something really innovative and exciting.

“There would be no space constrictions.”

The report claims that Ratcliffe is aware of the stadium issues and knows that it will take significant investment to fix.

Lee argues that building a new ground would be the best option for Manchester United in the long term but could cost an estimated £2billion.

He believes that Old Trafford can remain open while construction is underway which would not affect the club’s matchday revenues.