Man Utd move step closer to demolishing Old Trafford for new 'state-of-the-art' stadium as plan outlined

Manchester United are actively exploring plans to build a new 'state-of-the-art' stadium over the current Old Trafford site, it has been announced.

Issues surrounding the current state of Old Trafford has been at the forefront of discussions since Sir Jim Ratcliffe officially became a minority owner of the club last month.

The British billionaire reportedly wanted to build a 'Wembley of the North' as part of a plan to increase revenue streams and avoid future FFP dilemmas.

And in a recent interview with The Athletic, Ratcliffe outlined how regenerating Old Trafford is another option - but one that would come at a cost of around £1 billion.

Now, United themselves have stated that a joint task force has been established to 'explore options for regenerating the Old Trafford area of Greater Manchester'.

It is added that 'the development of a world-class football stadium' is the key part of the agenda - with various options on the table for how to achieve it.

The task force will be chaired by Lord Sebastian Coe. Meanwhile, most notably, United legend Gary Neville has been appointed, along with the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, and the chief executive of Trafford Council, Sara Todd.

In a statement to United's official website, Ratcliffe once again brought up the Wembley comparison as he reiterated his desire to complete a 'once-in-a-century opportunity'.

He said: "This can be a major regeneration project for an area of Greater Manchester which has played such a key role in British industrial history, but which today requires new investment to thrive again.

"The north-west of England has a greater concentration of major football clubs than anywhere else in the world, yet we don't have a stadium on the scale of Wembley, the Nou Camp or the Bernabeu.

"We will not be able to change that on our own, which is why this task force is so important to help us seize this once-in-a-century opportunity."