Manchester United should move away from Old Trafford and build a new stadium if the club is to have one of the best grounds in England, according to former midfielder Nicky Butt.
United are continuing to explore ways to finance a proposed 100,000-capacity arena, with the project expected to cost more than £2bn. The planned stadium would be built on land recently bought from Indurent, approximately 350 metres from Old Trafford.
The proposed development is intended to respect the history and traditions of Manchester United’s existing home, while creating what the club hopes will become one of the finest stadiums in the world.
Butt, who made more than 380 appearances for United and was part of the club’s successful youth system, believes the time has come for the club to leave Old Trafford behind. The stadium has faced repeated criticism in recent years over its deteriorating roof and poor seating.
Speaking to Midnite, Butt said the club could not allow nostalgia to prevent it from moving forward.
“You look atArsenal. You look at all these top clubs. You look at all these beautiful stadiums around now. You have to do that. It's nostalgia will be like ‘Oh, it's not great, it's not Old Trafford at all’. But if you don't do that, the older the stadium just gets older and older and older. It ends up becoming everyone wants to forget about how good how big that stadium used to be, how great it used to be. It's just what happens with football.
“You've got to move on. I think the problem with it is when you start renaming the stadium and naming rights, that's when people start seeing the bad side a little bit, which will happen. It's a all part of it, but Old Trafford will always be Old Trafford.
“There's no point trying to stick there and stay there with it. It isn't. It isn't the best stadium in the world. It's not even the best stadium in the country. And United being the club that they are, they should have the best stadium, or at least one of the best stadiums in the country. And I think that will happen if they move, and it's going to have to move purely fast if not doable in the same footprint.”
Manchester United’s plans form part of the wider Trafford Wharfside project, which the club hopes will create 48,000 jobs and 15,000 new homes. The scheme is also projected to increase the regional economy by £7.3bn.
The proposed move would represent a major change for a club that has played at Old Trafford since 1910. The stadium remains closely associated with Manchester United’s history, but its condition has increasingly become a subject of debate.
Butt said that remaining at the current ground simply because of its status would not be enough, arguing that Manchester United’s standing in football demanded a modern venue capable of matching its ambitions.
The club is expected to provide more information about the stadium proposals later this year, as it continues to seek funding for the ambitious project.