Originally Posted by Brown, Jon Brow
The difference is that United only ever spent 'their' money, not from a billionaire investor and nowhere near the levels that City or Chelsea ever spent. Uniteds wealth was earned from being successful and having a huge fan-base (a huge fan-base even before the Fergie era), and their most successful team was made up of academy players who cost next to nothing.
The Abu Dhabi United Group would never have bought Man City if they hadn't been given the Manchester City Council stadium.