Ed Woodward issues message on coronavirus to supporters at fans’ forum

Woodward also indicated that United are working on additional initiatives with the NHS: “After discussion with local NHS trusts, there is more support to come from the club in this area.”

Food poverty across Manchester is another growing concern which the fans and the club are working to address. Woodward continued: “We recognise that this is an economic crisis as well as a health crisis and that many vulnerable members of our community will be affected. That’s why we have donated over 30,000 items of food and drink to local charities, and made a £100,000 joint-donation with Manchester City to the Trussell Trust for use by 19 food banks across Greater Manchester.

“I’d like to put on record our appreciation for the role of the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust in helping co-ordinate this latter donation, building on the excellent work that they normally do collecting for food banks on match days.”

Thousands of staff from across the club have been part of the response plan and Woodward said it was a “crucial priority” for the club to support them. He added: “Protecting our people is another crucial priority. That’s why we continued to pay them in full, without recourse to the Government’s current furlough scheme, and made goodwill payments to over 3,000 casual workers to protect their incomes while our operations are disrupted. Of course, everyone is grappling with the economic realities of the pandemic and we are no different, so the longer the crisis continues the greater the impact will be for every club, including ourselves.”

Many of those staff teamed up with club legends, including Bryan Robson, Andy Cole and Gary Pallister, to make welfare calls to over 3,000 elderly and vulnerable supporters.

“We will continue looking for more ways of supporting those in need for as long as the pandemic continues. This is consistent with our values as a club, our strong roots into our community, and the deep relationships we have with our fans,” said Woodward.

“It is also important to acknowledge the part played by our successful business in allowing us to fulfil our social responsibilities. We have always believed that our commercial model gives us greater resilience than most clubs and we are grateful for the enduring support of our commercial partners in helping us achieve that.”