Rio Ferdinand was not popular among Newcastle United fans for his comments about the club when Mike Ashley was in charge, and now he has exposed himself to be a complete hypocrite.
While Newcastle were able to get rid of Ashley and are now enjoying great success under new owners, Manchester United fans and former players like Ferdinand are praying for a takeover of their own.
The Glazers have put the Red Devils up for sale, with talk of interest from a Qatari group and Sir Jim Ratcliffe. There have also been claims about investment groups buying a minority stake, which is not what the fans want. They want to see the back of the Glazers completely.
It is a frustrating situation for Man United fans, who are seeing the entire takeover process be played out in public. As the former Toon owner Mike Ashley once said, that is normally a good indication that a deal is not going to happen.
There has now been a report from ESPN stating that the Glazers are confident they will stay at Old Trafford and receive outside investment. This news has angered Man United fans, and former player Rio Ferdinand has called for transparency.
Rio Ferdinand wants Manchester United owners to be more open
Ferdinand has spoke to Man United fan channel Stretford Paddock, and explained what he wants from the Glazers.
“I’ve always said this, if they communicated with the fanbase much better, much more clearer, open and transparent, they might have a better reaction from the fans,” he said.
“Or at least a bit of back and forth with the fans. Just to humanise the situation because they’re so far removed from the fanbase.
“A lot of people say ‘well why should they know, why should the fans be told’ – the club is made up from fans, the fans make up a big part of this.”
He added: “I would urge them to speak to the fans, put a face to these words. You’re seeing like statements, it’s so wishy-washy. Put a face to it, humanise it and be that person at the forefront.”
That’s now what he said about Newcastle United under Mike Ashley
Ferdinand is right. The owners of a football club should be transparent. They should be open and honest with the supporters, because without the fans there is no club.
However, his attitude is a stark contrast to what he said about Newcastle United fans when they wanted to see the back of Ashley.
In 2019, Ferdinand said that Newcastle fans should have thanked Ashley for spending money to help get the club out of the Championship. He also said that fans should thank Ashley for getting Rafa Benitez to become manager, despite the Spaniard being the one to approach the club about the job.
The pundit continued with his attitude in March 2021, when the Saudi-backed takeover appeared to be off. Ferdinand stated that it is Ashley’s club to do what he wants with. He added that if the fans aren’t happy they should round their money up and buy it off him.
His comments about Newcastle United fans and Ashley were ridiculous at the time, and now look even stupider after what he has said about the Glazers.
Why should they be open and honest? It is their club, they can do what they want. Fans should be saying thank you for getting Erik ten Hag. They should be saying thank you for spending £86million on Antony and £57million on Lisandro Martinez.
If the Man United fans aren’t happy, then they should round up their pennies and buy the club themselves – right, Rio?!
What a hypocrite.