
Manchester United had to abandon Sunday’s Premier League clash with Bournemouth because a dummy bomb was left in the stadium by mistake after a training exercise.

Old Trafford was evacuated after a mobile phone was found strapped to piping. The match, which was being broadcast on Sky Sports, was postponed before a bomb disposal unit carried out a controlled explosion.

The results of the explosion showed the device was actually a mock-up, described by police as ‘incredibly lifelike’.

In what appears to be a staggering blunder, the ‘bomb’ was left at the stadium in error by an external training company in the days leading up to the game. A training exercise was held at the venue and the device, designed to look authentic, was not returned at its conclusion.

The match will be replayed at 8pm on Tuesday night and will be shown live on Sky Sports.

One security official, who saw the device, said: ‘It certainly did not look like something you would want to mess with.’

A bomb disposal vehicle arrives at Old Trafford during the evacuation of the 76,000-seater stadium ahead of the Premier League final-day clash between Manchester United and Bournemouth following the discovery of an 'incredibly lifelike explosive device'

Bomb experts were sent to the Manchester stadium to investigate what was later found to be a dummy explosive device

The Sky Sports team which was working inside the ground were also told to evacuate and had to broadcast some of the programme outside. The pundits are seen above reporting from outside Old Trafford while the bomb disposal van arrives at the 76,000-seater stadium

GREATER MANCHESTER POLICE CONFIRM OUR EXCLUSIVE STORY 'I am grateful to the Manchester United and Bournemouth supporters for their support and assistance today. 'Following today’s controlled explosion, we have since found out that the item was a training device which had accidentally been left by a private company following a training exercise involving explosive search dogs. 'Whilst this item did not turn out to be a viable explosive, on appearance this device was as real as could be, and the decision to evacuate the stadium was the right thing to do, until we could be sure that people were not at risk. 'Everyone remained calm, followed instructions, and worked with officers and stewards to ensure that a safe evacuation was quickly completed. Those present today were a credit to the football family and their actions should be recognised. 'I would also like to thank all those involved in the operation today for such a professional response, which includes police officers, stewards, MUFC staff, media representatives and commentators and the Bomb Disposal Team.' Greater Manchester Police Assistant Chief Constable John O'Hare Advertisement

The Premier League felt abandoning the fixture had been the right course of action after discussions with both clubs and the police.

‘When it comes to matters of security it is obviously right that Manchester United and the Premier League place the safety of supporters and employees foremost,’ the League said in a statement.

‘It is always the last resort to abandon one of our fixtures and while we apologise for the inconvenience caused to fans we are sure, in the circumstances, they will appreciate the need to do so.’

United’s executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward said: ‘The safety of fans is always our highest priority. The club takes security very seriously and staff are regularly trained with the police and emergency services to identify and deal with these incidents.

‘We will investigate the incident to inform future actions and decisions.’

Greater Manchester Police Assistant Chief Constable John O’Hare said: ‘We have since found out that the item was a training device which had accidentally been left by a private company following a training exercise involving search dogs.

'While this item did not turn out to be a viable explosive, on appearance this device was as real as could be, and the decision to evacuate the stadium was the right thing to do, until we could be sure that people were not at risk.’

Greater Manchester’s Mayor and Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd — a United fan — demanded a full investigation.

He said: ‘It is outrageous. A full inquiry is required to urgently find out how this happened, why it happened and who will be held accountable.

‘This fiasco caused massive inconvenience to supporters who had come from far and wide, wasted the time of huge numbers of police officers and the Army’s bomb squad, and unnecessarily put people in danger, as evacuating tens of thousands of people from a football stadium is not without risk.​ It is unacceptable.’

An expected crowd of 76,000 were settling into their seats when a steward spotted the device and raised the alarm. After a police officer trained in recognising suspect packages inspected the find and decided it looked viable, the bomb disposal unit was called.

Players were kept inside the stadium while fans dispersed as the device, on the opposite side of the ground from the dressing-rooms, was not thought to be big enough to threaten their safety even if it was authentic.

A team of sniffer dogs were sent round the stadium hunting for clues that would help detectives in their investigation at the ground

Sniffer dogs search the West Stand after stands were evacuated before the football match between Manchester United and Bournemouth

At around 3.20pm the remaining fans from all the stands began to filter out of the ground - with the stadium's PA system informing supporters of the latest information. The final-day Premier League clash has now been postponed until Tuesday night

A bag is searched in the stands prior to the match being abandoned at Old Trafford which has a capacity for almost 76,000 people

Police and sniffer dogs were in the ground after they were told about the suspicious device found by stewards

A suspect package was identified in the north-west corner of the ground which police and sniffer dogs were brought in to investigate

Manchester United's Twitter account and Greater Manchester Police confirmed that a suspect package was found and a controlled explosion carried out. The match was abandoned before it even started with officials sending tens of thousands of fans home

Manchester United's official Twitter account confirmed an 'incredibly lifelike explosive device' was found and safely detonated by officials

Manchester United's Marcus Rashford leaves Old Trafford following the security alert yesterday later found to be a mistake

Manchester United's David De Gea (left) and Ander Herrera (right) leave Old Trafford after the game was abandoned

Police on horseback were drafted in to help control the crowds and were directing people away from the stadium during the evacuation

A fan cradles a small child in his arms (right) while police officers direct tens of thousands of fans away from the ground (left) earlier today

Tens of thousands of fans pile out of Old Trafford this afternoon after the game had to be abandoned due to a suspect package found

Old Trafford was evacuated just minutes before kick-off due to a security alert when officials discovered a suspicious package in a toilet

A steward evacuates fans from the ground prior to the Premier League match between Manchester United and Bournemouth at Old Trafford

Empty stands at Old Trafford following the evacuation of the 76,000-seater stadium due to a 'code red' security warning

Fire engines and police officers were scrambled to Old Trafford alongside bomb disposal units after the suspect device was discovered

Dozens of police officers were scrambled to the scene after a 'Code Red' warning was issued following the discovery of a suspect device

Police had told fans to stay away as detectives and sniffer dogs flooded the stadium to carry out their investigations and a warning was broadcast to those inside 30 minutes before kick-off. Stewards ushered around 20,000 from the Sir Alex Ferguson Stand and the Stretford End when the warning was announced.

At about 3.20pm, the remaining fans began to filter out of the ground. The controlled explosion was carried out at around 4.45pm.

Bournemouth flew back to the south coast following the abandonment. Manager Eddie Howe said: ‘The players were doing their warm-up as normal and everything was good. Then, they came in early and we were a little unsure what was happening at that time.

‘Word got back to us that there had been a suspect package spotted. Very quickly it became apparent the game was not going to take place. We decided to come back to Bournemouth because there was no sign of the game being played the next day.’

With tension high, extra measures were introduced. Sky Sports pundit Graeme Souness claimed he and co-analyst Thierry Henry were searched amid heightened security ahead of the evacuation. He said: ‘For the first time today we were patted down, I can’t remember that here. Unless they were given a tip-off.’

As supporters left the stadium, there was inevitably disappointment that the game did not go ahead.

Sports commentator Stan Collymore tweeted about the suspicious package while others revealed the 'Code Red' warning has been issued

Fans on Twitter had concerns that a suspect package managed to get into the stadium but were glad that people appeared to be safe

A sniffer dog takes a rest from searching the stands at Old Trafford following a 'Code Red' security alert prompted by a suspect package

Fans await news after being evacuated from Manchester United's ground ahead of kick-off. The Premier League match was later postponed

Fans wait outside the ground for the latest news after being told to evacuate due to a security alert. They were later sent home by officials

Stewards line up outside Old Trafford after the stadium was fully evacuated ahead of kick off following the discovery of a suspect package

Sam Stride, a United supporter from Bristol, said: ‘This is the first time I have been to Old Trafford to see a game. My mate and I have known each other for 63 years and we travelled up together. We sat in the Stretford End for about five seconds before they asked us to leave. It’s very disappointing.’

Billy Ifrose, from Cardiff, said: ‘I came on a coach from Cardiff. It is the first time I have been to see Manchester United live. It is a beautiful day and I am a bit sad.’

A United fan from Sierra Leone, whose dream trip to Old Trafford was ruined, will have an extended trip funded by supporters.

The man, known as ‘Moses’, who works in security in the west African country, had been invited by friends at the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust, who have offered to pay for a later return flight home and to give him a ticket for Saturday’s FA Cup final at Wembley between United and Crystal Palace.

Ian Stirling, vice-chair of MUST, said: ‘A friend of mine worked with Moses in Sierra Leone and he said he should come over for a game. The poor lad was distraught — being so close to the ground and not being able to go in, not knowing when he might get this chance again.

‘We’ve agreed to rearrange his flight and sort him out with a ticket for the FA Cup final. A couple of friends will put him up as well. He’s still distraught at not getting into Old Trafford — that was his dream.’

The Premier League game was scheduled to kick-off at 3pm and was pushed back to 3.45pm. The match was evetually cancelled

Fans streamed to the exits in both the Sir Alex Ferguson Stand the Stretford End on Sunday after officials told them the ground was being evacuated over safety concerns