A fan who is refusing to cut his hair until Manchester United win five games in a row has issued a response after he was attacked by a fellow supporter in a shocking incident at Old Trafford.
Frank Ilett has become somewhat of a viral sensation over the past year.
The life-long United fan, who is originally from Oxford but now lives in Spain, promised on October 5, 2024, that he would only cut his hair when the Reds recorded five victories on the bounce.
It was a brave challenge given the state of affairs at Old Trafford. "It's been an absolutely crazy journey," he recently told the BBC. "I never expected my hair, or my following, to be as big as it has become."
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The closest United have come to that record was in January, when they recorded three wins on the trot, but Ilett remains hopeful.
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He was in the stands on Saturday as United recorded a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Chelsea, but his afternoon at Old Trafford was marred by an incident involving another match-goer.
As seen in footage that soon went viral, the angry supporter can be seen grabbing Ilett's hair before pulling it aggressively. After several uncomfortable seconds, the supporter then let go before unleashing a verbal tirade.
"F*** off, f*** off, I'll do what I f****** want," he said. "Listen, he's not a United f****** fan, so f*** off, f*** off."
After the full-time whistle, Ilett spoke about the incident.
"Yeah, it was a bit weird to be honest," he told The Sun. "I thought he was just joking to start with, but then he started yanking my hair and calling me an 'attention-seeking c***'.
"The whole day was full of hundreds of positive interactions yesterday and 99 per cent of all of the reactions to this challenge has been nice. But just a few people can ruin it."
He continued: "My intention with this challenge was never to highlight Man United's flaws. It was always and always will be to spread humour and positivity to United fans in a difficult time.
"I never expected it to go on for so long, but I'm hopeful we can go on a good run soon and I, more than most, want these wins to come as soon as possible."
Ilett added: "I will always try to focus on the positives and hope that this was just a one off."
A day later and Ilett, who goes by the name The United Strand on social media, released a further statement on his Instagram account.
He said: "Day 352 of not cutting my hair until Manchester United win five games in a row. I'll talk about it a bit more some other time. I just want to say thank you for all of the support."
Topics: Man Utd, Chelsea, Premier League
Jack Kenmare