Ruben Amorim's press conference interrupted by leaking ceiling after Manchester United defeat
Ruben Amorim's post-match press conference was interrupted by a leak in the ceiling on Sunday.
Amorim answered questions from journalists after Manchester United's 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth in the Premier League. Conditions for the match were difficult and the press conference room ceiling leaked as Amorim spoke.
There have been leaks around Old Trafford when it's rained heavily over the last few years, but club sources have confirmed they are "fixed immediately" when they are identified.
United are in the process of considering whether to revamp or rebuild the stadium after Sir Jim Ratcliffe's investment.
A clip showing a huge leak through the Old Trafford roof went viral prior to the Manchester derby in 2019 and there have been similar clips circulating online since, including seven months ago when seats were drenched after a visit from Arsenal.
United lost 1-0 against Arsenal on that afternoon and a deluge of rain struck Manchester after the game. The club said 1.6 inches of rain came down in the two hours after the final whistle, which was more than half that had fallen on Old Trafford throughout the whole of May 2023.
United sources privately conceded 'some parts of the stadium struggled to cope' and reiterated that Ratcliffe has created an Old Trafford task force to address such issues.
In February, Ratcliffe declared his preference to rebuild Old Trafford, saying: “In an ideal world, I think it’s a no-brainer, a stadium of the north, which would be a world-class stadium where England could play and you could have the FA Cup final and it’s not all centred around the south of England.
"So in an ideal world, absolutely, that’s where I would be, but you’ve got to be practical about life. In broad terms, a refurb is one [billion] and a new stadium — both of these would include the campus so, you know, the museum’s cr*p and the shop is too small and you’d have the Xbox thing for entertaining the fans. So in other words, the fans could come there and do some stuff. So include the campus in both cases, in very simple terms you are talking about one versus two [billion].
“I think the refurb would take longer than the new one because it’s more complicated, because obviously you’re building and you have to build over a main railway line which is quite complicated and expensive.”
