Manchester United news: Players told it is 'not cost effective' to swap shirts after games

The club is worth £2bn but players have allegedly been encouraged not to swap shirts after matches in a bid to save money

Joseph Edwards (R) of Yeovil Town swaps shirts with Wayne Rooney in the third round of the FA Cup (Getty)

Manchester United’s players have reportedly been encouraged not to swap shirts after matches in a bid to save money.

Although United have made Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic two of the highest paid players in the league, paying them £290,000 and £260,000 per week respectively, the club’s stars have been told it is “not cost effective” to give away shirts.

According to reports, the players have all been issued with the same shirt ration – two with short sleeves and two with long sleeves.

Handing them out to fans at the end of games is also allegedly frowned upon.

A source from United told The Sun: “They are asked not to swap shirts so they don’t have to be replaced. It seems daft given how much the club is worth.”

The club signed a £750m 10-year kit deal with Adidas in 2014. At the time, Adidas chief executive Herbert Hainer said: “We expect total sales to reach £1.5bn during the duration of our partnership.”

The club revenue from Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s shirt sales alone surged past the £76m mark just one week after the player signed for United.

But despite generating such figures, the club hierarchy is “keeping an eye on costs” according to the Sun’s source.

United’s players will be far more concerned with the upcoming Manchester derby, however, with both clubs looking to maintain their 100 per cent winning start to the season.