Watch: Manchester United look at new Old Trafford roof after rain gushes into Arsenal dressing room

Manchester United have considered putting a new roof on Old Trafford but any such moves are on hold until a decision has been made on their stadium redevelopment project.

Old Trafford’s deterioration after years of neglect under the Glazers was underlined on Sunday night after footage from inside the away dressing room showed streams of water leaking in through the roof.

The short video, which appeared to have been filmed by a member of Arsenal’s staff in the wake of their 1-0 victory over United, has further demonstrated how desperately the stadium is in need of repair.

A special task force convened by Sir Jim Ratcliffe is currently exploring the feasibility of a new stadium compared to redeveloping United’s existing Old Trafford home.

United are understood to have detailed plans in place to replace the roof on the Sir Bobby Charlton stand but what would be a multi-million, multi-year project with huge operational considerations and cause significant disruption is now intrinsically linked to the redevelopment options being investigated by the task force.

‌The Old Trafford Regeneration Task Force, which is being chaired by Lord Coe and also comprises former United captain Gary Neville and Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, among other prominent local leaders are due to report back in the autumn.

Sunday’s events came just hours after Ratcliffe, Coe and Burnham had met with Labour leader Keir Starmer to discuss a potential new stadium as the centrepiece of a huge regeneration project in Trafford Park.

Manchester was hit by an extraordinary storm on Sunday, with 41mm of rain falling in the two hours after the final whistle. In the whole of May 2023, by contrast, only 29mm of rain fell on Old Trafford.

Leaks during heavy rain have been a frequent occurrence at Old Trafford in recent years, and on Sunday the storm created a remarkable waterfall effect from the roof of the stadium. Elsewhere in the ground, water flooded down the stands.

The scenes witnessed during the storm caused many to joke at United’s expense, with Old Trafford described as the ‘fourth tallest waterfall in England’ given the 55 metre-tall East Stand would sit only behind Cauldron Snout (60 metre), Canonteign Falls (70 metre) and Cautley Spout (76 metre). Others cruelly mocked them with renditions of Waterfall by Manchester-based rock band The Stone Roses.

The dressing rooms and tunnel areas at Old Trafford were not immune from the flooding and the spectacle, with Sky Sports cameras still filming the ground after the game, will serve only to reaffirm the need for a redeveloped arena or new purpose built stadium.

Images emerged on Monday of workers suspended on the East Stand roof following Sunday’s flash flooding, although sources said that the repairs were pre-planned to address the faded facia boards that required repainting.

Old Trafford was understood to be fully operational and both the museum and tours opened on time at 10am with more than 700 fans visitors passing through the doors during the course of the day. The storm has had no impact on United’s ability to stage Wednesday’s game against Newcastle. The deluge is understood to have caused leaks inside terminals at Manchester Airport and at the O2 Victoria Warehouse, forcing the cancellation of a concert.

It is understood that all supporters exited the stadium safely on Sunday evening and that United staff began a clean-up operation of the flooded areas once the rainfall had eased.

As revealed by Telegraph Sport earlier this year, Ratcliffe has ambitious plans to create a new “Wembley of the North”. The Ineos owner is in favour of building a new stadium rather than developing the existing Old Trafford ground but the viability of such a project is being explored by a task force.