Anybody expecting an interrogation of Ed Woodward worthy of his Watergate namesake, as Manchester United revealed their latest financial results, has not listened in on one of these conference calls before.



Rarely do questions from investors probe Premier League performances but, even by usual standards, the first enquiry from the floor on Tuesday left a lot to be desired regarding journalistic rigour.



“Can you just explain a little why loans have taken off and what they actually mean?”



David Frost, it wasn’t.



Woodward provided an explanation of this rudimentary transfer market practice but, undeterred, the man on the other end of the line fired back.



“To be direct, is this a way of getting around paying agents’ fees?”



Woodward was quick to interrupt.



“No, no… it’s just an opportunity if you don’t necessarily want to sell a player, because you can see a future for...