'Risible, reprehensible' - Debate rages between Man City and Man Utd fans over Wembley of North plans and Etihad public money

It doesn't take much to get the blood boiling between Manchester United and Manchester City fans, with the latest issue causing contention coming after Sir Jim Ratcliffe's bold vision for Old Trafford.

After purchasing a minority stake in United, Ratcliffe has a clear plan to turn their fortunes around, quickly identifying Old Trafford as in need of urgent redevelopment - or even a completely new rebuild. As City fans take great delight in signing, 'Old Trafford is falling down'.

Redeveloping the 75,000-seater stadium has its complications. The infrastructure is old, and the trainline behind the main stand makes any expansion on the smaller of the four sides logistically difficult as well as very expensive. With the other three sides towering above it, that is the only realistic room to increase capacity.

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So that leaves a new build, likely next door to the current stadium on club land. Trafford Council have intentions to redevelop the area, and there is space for a modern, state of the art 80-90,000 seater stadium - but that comes with significant costs of its own.

Ratcliffe is appealing to build a stadium that can be the 'Wembley of the North', able to hold FA Cup and UEFA Champions League finals. He is seeking some form of public funds to assist in building the potential new home for United, with a taskforce set up to investigate all options including Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham.

The notion of using public money to build a football stadium has been met with predictable scepticism from critics and in response,