Man Utd fans think Omar Berrada has aimed a sly dig at former club Man City ahead of Premier League opener

Manchester United fans think Omar Berrada has aimed a sly dig at former club Manchester City ahead of the new Premier League season.

On Friday Man United will begin their first Premier League campaign since Sir Jim Ratcliffe completed his minority takeover of the club earlier this year.

While Erik ten Hag's side looks fairly similar to last season, there has been plenty of change upstairs in the boardroom.

United made waves by poaching Omar Berrada from neighbours Man City; the Moroccan left his position of chief football operations officer at City Football Group to become United's chief executive officer (CEO).

City placed Berrada on gardening leave in January, but he has now taken up his position at Old Trafford.

He has been joined by sporting director Dan Ashworth, who left his position at Newcastle to join United, and technical director Jason Wilcox, who spent six years as Man City's academy manager.

United fans are understandably excited about having a proper footballing structure at the club, especially as they've done it by taking an important figure from their rivals.

On Thursday, United published on their official website Berrada's message to United fans, and many think he aimed a sly dig at former employers City.

While addressing United's history, he wrote: "That glorious history speaks for itself. When I walked through the doors for the first time last month, I was immediately struck by the enormity of the club and what it means to our fans here in Manchester and all over the world.

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"I think it’s impossible to understand how big Manchester United really is until you’re on the inside. That’s one advantage all of you have had over me, but I’m catching up and I feel it more and more every day. It is a very easy place to fall in love with."

Plenty of United fans on social media are convinced that the 46-year-old was taking aim at City, who United fans like to claim have no history compared to themselves.

"This is absolutely a thinly veiled shot at City being a small club and I’m all here for it," one fan wrote on X.

"He has tasted water and wine and now he knows the difference," commented another.

"Omar Berrada spent 12 years at Manchester City, yesterday marked his first month since starting his role officially ,and has already fallen in love with the club, no one can compare to us," a third United supporter wrote.