Man Utd Players 'to Be Fined' After No-Showing Event in Protest at Match Preparation Gaffes

A group of Manchester United players are expected to be fined by the club for failing to turn up to a sponsorship event organised by the club's commercial partners on Friday. 

The decision to no show was taken by the players out of protest for the club's poor travel organisation as of late. 

United players arrived late to their home game against Juventus in the Champions League on Tuesday (just 52 minutes before kick off), despite the team meeting being moved to a hotel closer to the ground to combat traffic issues. 

Mourinho, who walked from the hotel to the ground via security escort, wanted his players to follow suit - although this idea was scrapped by security personnel. 

This was because United only had enough staff on hand to escort the manager to the stadium, but not the whole match day squad. The Portuguese manager arrived at Old Trafford before his team, and is set to be staying out of any disputes between the players and the club's travel organisers.

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This was the second consecutive Champions League home game that United had arrived late for, after the club were charged by UEFA for turning up late against Valencia earlier this month. 

The players were said to be unhappy with how this affected their pre-match preparations, so declined to turn up to the event held at the club's Carrington training ground. 

The club's hierarchy are said to be angered by the players' decision, and are set to fine them accordingly as suggested by reports in the Daily Mail. The type of sponsorship event held cost the club thousands of pounds to put on, so having their own players not show up would have been an embarrassment on the club's part. 

The board don't believe that the traffic problems in Manchester can be blamed on the club, which is another reason for their fury. 

"These sponsors pay a lot of money and this is an event which is taken seriously," a source said.

"United have a fantastic relationship with their commercial partners and this did not go down well at all.’ The refusal is seen as a one-off aimed at making a point."

The club have so far declined to comment on the story. Officials are also said to be looking into fixing United's travel problems in the future.