Manchester United set to suffer Arsenal and Tottenham pain but FFP bonus will come from Sir Jim Ratcliffe dream

Sir Jim Ratcliffe wants it to be a Wembley of the north and Andy Burnham described it as the "biggest regeneration project" that the north of England will ever see. It's fair to say a new Old Trafford will not come cheap.

That is why Ratcliffe and Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, have been making their play for public money, a desire that is unlikely to pay off too handsomely given the state of public finances at the moment. If Ratcliffe wants to turn this particular dream into a reality, it is going to be costly.

The working group established by Ratcliffe aimed to look at the options available in funding a new stadium and the feasibility of such a project, to report later this year. The biggest question is going to be how it's funded when the cost is likely to exceed £2bn at the very least.

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The absence of any member of the Glazer family from the group already hints at their position. They barely spent on Old Trafford while they were in charge and they aren't going to foot the bill for a new ground. They have become absentee majority owners.

Ratcliffe is also unlikely to cop for much of the rebuild. He put $300million as part of the investment deal but that is a drop in the ocean for what will be required. Public funding might cover some of the infrastructure costs around the ground, but loans and club funds will have to contribute a significant portion of the bill.

To match Ratcliffe's ambition for the stadium United might need to go through a period of parsimony and they can look to two of the Premier League's outstanding stadiums for