Gill told the audience at the Soccerex European Forum in Manchester that the Florida-based Glazers – who bought the club in a debt-based deal in 2005, were ‘long-term owners and not sellers.’
Gill defended the decision to re-finance £500million of debt through a bond issue which was twice oversubscribed and which fanned the sparks of fan discontent that has become highly visible as fans have adopted United’s original green and yellow colours in protest.
But Gill said that refinancing the debt under better financial terms was the right step to take.
“We now have an element of debt which is very easily serviced. It is a more flexible and appropriate (debt) structure. We now have (financial) certainty and can get on with our jobs,” he said.
“The Glazers understand sport and what it takes to run a successful team. They know that you need to invest.
While stressing that he knew nothing about Red Knight other that what he had read in the newspapers, Gill admitted that the group contained “a lot of sensible and intelligent people”
But he stressed his conviction that a consortium of up to 40 super-wealthy individuals was not the right mechanism for running a club of United’s stature.
“Wealthy people tend to have been successful in business ands all want to be decision makers,” he said. “The biggest clubs, including Chelsea, Milan and Manchester City are run on a clear, single decision making.
“The Glazers have no wish to sell and they are running the club in the right way. While there may be some dissenters who want to change it, the vast majority of supporters should be happy with the way we are running things.”
Speaking just days after United had won the Carling Cp at Wembley, Gill said that the real test of the way the club was being run was success on and off the pitch. United’s revenues for the last quarter were up some 20 per cent.
He told the audience that manager sir Alex Ferguson had money available to spend on new players but would not be forced into paying above the odds for talent.
