• Premier League

'Moyes Out' banner flown over Old Trafford

ESPN staff
March 29, 2014
The plane flies over the Sir Alex Ferguson stand during Manchester United's match against Aston Villa © Getty Images
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Manchester United fans flew a banner protesting against David Moyes' reign over Old Trafford during the meeting with Aston Villa on Saturday.

A United fans' blog, therepublikofmancunia.com, had said during the week that funds had been raised to pay for an aeroplane to carry a banner bearing the message: "Wrong One - Moyes Out."

Airads Banners, which described itself as an "aerial advertising and flying plane banner company," had announced on Saturday morning that it was preparing to set off for the stadium - their tweet, however, incorrectly spelled the United manager's name in a hashtag as Moyse.

The protest was planned after the 3-0 derby defeat to Manchester City, after which stadium stewards had to be deployed to prevent supporters from tearing down a banner honouring Moyes as "The Chosen One."

The "Moyes Out" banner was met with boos among sections of the Old Trafford support on Saturday, and former United striker Michael Owen, working as a pundit for BT Sport, said it was "not very classy."

Moyes had told his pre-match news conference on Friday that he believed the fans were within their rights to make the protest and said he retained the backing of a significant number of supporters. He added in an interview with BT Sport before kick-off: "I think they would have been better off putting the money into Darren Fletcher's charity."

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