United only missed out on an unprecedented fourth consecutive championship by a point; stung by appalling refereeing decisions in both defeats to Chelsea. There were concerns over the state of the United squad, still deprived of the fragile Hargreaves, carrying a creaking Rio Ferdinand and mid-to-late 30-somethings Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes. The traditional red and black colours are swapped to green and yellow as a throwback to the days when Manchester United was known as Newton Heath.

While Manchester United have won countless trophies in the past, including the hallowed Treble (the Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League in 1998–99, the first and to date only side in English football to do so), things have been a bit tough for the squad. Sales always spiked when the United badge was cracked on the back page of newspapers and the acrimony among matchgoers has never been as severe in the era of United AD (after dominance) as it has this month. We have a semi-final on Wednesday night and a lot of these players today won't be playing," Ferguson fumed. Most recently, he revealed tacit support for the anti-Glazer protest, until now a position stated only by Cantona and Solskjaer. Green and gold scarves were wrapped around the necks of thousands of United supporters, others wore hats and green and yellow balloons floated around the stadium before kick-off.

Neither Woodward nor any of the six siblings listed on the United board of directors were present for the post-Ferguson nadir against Burnley.

Ferguson was the glue that held the club together in the wake of the Glazer takeover in 2005 he was hugely culpable for.The 5-0 thrashing of Portsmouth, the 1-1 draw with Villa and routine 3-0 defeat of West Ham in February were not televised and the humdinger of a win in Milan, as well as a limp loss at Everton, barely mentioned or broadcast the anti-Glazer militants in the unseen away ends. Midway through 2009-10, United were second and two points adrift of Chelsea and ended the decade with a 5-0 dismantling of Wigan Athletic, though that did not temper the outcry at United's decision to pull out of a deal for the Serbian teenager Adem Ljajic. Love United Hate Glazer' banners were unfurled in the second tier of the Stretford End and would reappear in home games against Liverpool, Fulham and Bayern Munich. The match was not televised live in the UK but the protests had gained attention and green and gold scarves started to sell like hotcakes.

It was in response to a query about the mutinous chants focused on the United owners, the Glazer family, and the club's executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward. As a recovering player, he became a patron of the Shareholders United group and opposed the 2005 takeover by the Americans. They are the original colours of Manchester United and the fans wear them because they love this club. A club spokesperson said United took 'into consideration the young players emerging through the ranks at the club, and we have not chosen to pursue the transfer'. In January 2010, Wayne Rooney poached all four in the 4-0 thrashing of Hull City at Old Trafford and it was soundtracked to the same chant: 'We want Glazers out'.Suddenly, despite all the success, the green and gold campaign started," Neville reflected in his 2011 autobuiography, Red. In 2018, Berbatov claimed he told his agent, 'f--- off, we're going to Man United' upon learning of City's new riches.