Manchester United cheekily asked crosstown rivals Man City if they could give their players a lift to the upcoming Ballon d’Or ceremony.
In the latest cost-cutting efforts from Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his INEOS team, United wanted to save the expense of hiring their own private jet for the glitzy do in Paris on Monday night.
City have eight stars nominated for the prestigious Golden Ball gong, which crowns the best player in European football, and have chartered a plane to fly their team out to France following their Premier League clash against Southampton this weekend.
Man United have two players nominated, and talkSPORT understands a report by the Daily Mail – which claims the Red Devils asked City if they had room on their plane to seat their players – is true.
However, United’s request was met with a ‘no’ from City chiefs and the Old Trafford outfit have since had to arrange their own travel.
United sources told talkSPORT the club were keen to avoid chartering a private jet for only two players due to the impact on the environment.
They also insisted it’s normal for clubs in the north-west of England to share private jets when necessary, including when players return from international duty.
We were also told all parts of the club are seeking to save costs wherever possible to make the club more efficient and maximise funds for investment in football.
This comes after the decision was made to axe Sir Alex Ferguson from his paid ambassadorial role at the club – which did not go down well, especially not with Old Trafford legend Eric Cantona.
Fergie has held the role ever since his retirement in 2013 and, while he is not being made to step down from his responsibilities, he has agreed to no longer be paid – saving the club £2.16million per year.
INEOS’ cost-cutting drive has been in effect since Ratcliffe took office in the spring, which has seen 250 jobs slashed, the removal of club credit cards and the withdrawal of free travel for staff to May’s FA Cup final.
In total, ten stars from the Premier League made it onto the final list of Ballon d’Or nominees.
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Rodri, Erling Haaland, Phil Foden and Ruben Dias represent City in the list, while Aston Villa’s World Cup-winning goalkeeper Emi Martinez is also nominated, alongside Martin Odegaard, William Saliba, Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice of Arsenal and Cole Palmer of Chelsea.
City also have three players nominated in the Women’s category – Yui Hasegawa, Lauren Hemp and Khadija Shaw – while Savinho has been nominated for the Kopa Trophy for the best player under 21.
United starlets Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo have been nominated for the same award.
