Gill: Glazers have been vindicated

Although Malcolm Glazer's controversial £790million takeover in 2005 was accompanied by protests from long-standing United supporters groups and the formation of rebel outfit FC United, the club have provided the perfect answer to their critics by posting stunning profits of £59.6million for the 12 months to June 2007 - a massive 93% rise on the previous year.

The figures form part of an impressive set of results which have seen turnover rise to £245million, once sales from Nike merchandise and MUTV are added to a group turnover of £210million - a sum which United officials feel entitles them to claim they are once again the richest club in the world.

With revenue streams increasing in every area and more to come this year once the new, vastly-improved Premier League TV deal starts to take effect, United are in far healthier shape than anyone could have predicted prior to the Glazer family's involvement.

And Gill is convinced if the takeover had never happened, Sir Alex Ferguson would not have had the funds for his summer blitz, which saw the arrivals of Nani, Anderson, Owen Hargreaves and Carlos Tevez.

"I wouldn't disagree with the view that it would have been unimaginable to sign those four players if we had still been a PLC," said Gill.

"There is a new structure in place now and decisions can be made pretty quickly. I was on the telephone in Portugal to Joel Glazer over Nani and Anderson. He said just do it.

"It wasn't a long, drawn-out affair. Tevez and Hargreaves were, but for different reasons.

"The family understand the requirement to have a successful team, playing in the Manchester United way, and they have backed the manager with funds."