'Bust by Christmas' - Sir Jim Ratcliffe stuns Gary Neville as he reveals the true state of Man Utd's finances

Manchester United owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has stunned everyone by making a huge claim about the club's finances in a bombshell interview.

On Monday evening, United minority owner Ratcliffe took part in a series of bombshell interviews just a day after fans protested his recent cost-cutting decisions at Old Trafford.

The INEOS chief has come under fire for several big decisions since he first arrived at the club in December 2023, most notably the wave of redundancies in recent months.

But now, Ratcliffe has responded to the criticism by making a bold claim about United's finances that is truly shocking.

"I don't enjoy reading the newspaper very much these days I have to say," Ratcliffe admitted when speaking to the BBC.

"I know it's unpopular, and this period of change is uncomfortable for people, and some of the decisions we have to make are unpleasant.

"But they are necessary to put Manchester United back on to a stable footing. If people want to see Manchester United winning trophies again then we have do all this stuff."

The 72-year-old continued, making a shocking claim that if changes such as the recent redundancies were not made, then United would be out of money as soon as Christmas this year.

Ratcliffe added: "Manchester United would have run out of cash by the end of this year - by the end of 2025 - after having me put $300m (£232.72m) in and if we buy no new players in the summer.

"We are in the process of change and it's an uncomfortable period and disruptive and I do feel sympathy with the fans. The simple answer is the club runs out of money at Christmas if we don't do those things."

In an interview with club legend Gary Neville on The Overlap, Ratcliffe doubled down on this claim, leaving the former defender stunned.

Manchester United fans protested the club's ownership ahead of the Premier League match against Arsenal. (Image: Getty)

Ratcliffe told Neville that he and the rest of the ownership were extremely happy with how manager Ruben Amorim has performed since arriving at the club in November.

"I think Ruben has done an excellent job," said Ratcliffe.

"If I look at the salary bill of the squad that's available to him, that salary bill is not the salary bill of Manchester City or Liverpool, it's a fraction of it.

"If you look at the salary bill of the players that are available to him that are not injured, or not out on loan, then our salary bill ranks us about, you know, middling, second half of the table."