Manchester United face repairs bill from Derby County after '300 seats damaged'

Shrewsbury Town have since decided not to finance an extra 500 seats to be installed for their fifth-round tie

Wayne Rooney celebrates during the win against Derby County (Getty)

Manchester United face being asked to compensate Derby County after 300 seats were allegedly damaged by visiting supporters during the FA Cup clash last month.

The Championship club discovered the damage in the away end at the iPro Stadium, formerly called Pride Park, the morning after their 3-1 defeat by Louis van Gaal’s side.

A report by the Guardian suggests Derby have informed United about up to 300 seats which were vandalised and will request that the relevant repairs are paid for by their visitors on 29 January.

It is believed to have played a role in Shrewsbury Town’s decision not to finance an extra 500 seats to be installed at New Meadow ahead of their fifth round meeting with the Red Devils later this month.

The Shropshire-based club did something similar when they hosted Premier League champions Chelsea last year but have been deterred from doing so again in light of the incident at Derby.

Shrewsbury have also been informed that some members of the away faithful attempted to enter the premises without match day tickets during the match against Cambridge United earlier in the competition.

“Each fixture is looked at on a case-by-case basis and all circumstances are taken into consideration,” Chief Inspector James Baker, event tactical commander for West Mercia police, said.

“We have an excellent relationship with the football club and, having jointly discussed the options, we support the club’s decision not to provide additional temporary seating.”

Despite receiving more than 9,000 requests for tickets for the clash on February 22, United have been handed an allocation of just 1,500 with a section of seats being reserved for netting to cordon off the two sets of fans.