'A love story' - Manchester United told alternative plan to controversial Old Trafford demolition

Manchester United are set to submit plans for a new 100,000 stadium by the end of the year.

So what would happen to the current Old Trafford? Sources indicated in the summer United wanted to preserve the history of the existing stadium rather than demolishing it. It's understood United are conscious fans would be against knocking down the 114-year-old ground and plans to scale down the capacity to 30,000 were mooted.

The stadium could be home to the women's and academy teams and sit on the same site as the new 100,000-seater Old Trafford. The whole club would be connected and the site of decades of history, triumphs and memories wouldn't be lost to demolition.

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Although that would be a popular choice with fans, the last few days have seen reports suggesting United could make a U-turn on those initial plans and demolish Old Trafford. But that would be missing a trick according to Professor Lars J. T. Pedersen, a business school professor at the Norwegian School of Economics.

"I think this is a fantastic opportunity to bring the different teams together as one club," he said in an interview with the Manchester Evening News. "Okay, we need a small stadium next door because we get smaller crowds, but now there is an opportunity to bring them together in one location, to integrate with the new and the old."

Pedersen, who works at the largest business school in Norway, and his colleague Fredrik Barth, CEO of VILL Architecture, spoke to the MEN in June and the pair chatted about Old Trafford again over video call this week. In the initial interview, Pedersen and Barth presented