Sir Jim Ratcliffe's brutal Man Utd job cuts 'left children in tears' as youth coaches pay price for INEOS' cost-cutting measures

United announced plans to cut an additional 200 jobs, and the latest round of redundancies follows the 250 job cuts made last year, all part of a broader effort to streamline operations under the ownership of Ratcliffe. According to The Sun, the first wave of job cuts saw academy coaches face the axe. They were informed of their impending job losses in July, just before the return of young players for the new season. The announcement reportedly left many of them in tears, unable to hide their distress.

Seven academy staff members, including three of the club’s longest-serving employees, were the first to be informed that their positions were at risk. But it wasn’t just the staff who were affected. Some of the academy players were said to have broken down in response to seeing their mentors upset, while others attempted to offer support to the devastated staff.

In response to the situation, Nick Cox, the director of United’s youth academy, sent an email to parents explaining that the redundancies were part of a larger effort to make Manchester United “a more lean and agile organisation" and to ensure the club's future competitiveness.

A parent of a youth player shared their frustration with the situation, describing it as deeply upsetting.

"How the club acted was outrageous. It was like waiting all summer and then sacking all the teachers on the first day of term — in front of the kids,” one of them told The Sun.

"Some of the coaches were crying, some of the kids were then crying — and parents were wondering, 'What on earth is going on?'".

The cuts have raised questions about the long-term impact on the club's prestigious youth academy, which has long been regarded as one of the finest in the world. The Class of '92, which included stars like David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, and Paul Scholes, remains one of the club’s proudest legacies. More recently, players like Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho have gone on to make their mark in the first team, proving the academy’s continued success in developing top talent.

With 450 redundancies now expected to have taken place within a year, the number of job losses represents a third of the club's total workforce. This is a significant restructuring that has raised concerns about the morale of its staff. On the pitch, United now look ahead to their upcoming FA Cup fifth-round tie against Fulham on Sunday.