Fergie can spend this summer - Gill

Published May. 2, 2010 5:41 a.m. ET

foxsports

Manchester United chief executive David Gill has reiterated Sir Alex Ferguson will have money to spend on new signings in the summer.

The mammoth debts built up by the Glazer family at Old Trafford have led to suggestions Ferguson is working on a reduced transfer budget, despite last year's £80million sale of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid.

Ferguson has repeatedly stated that he still has a large bulk of that cash available for new players and has already agreed deals for Chris Smalling and Javier Hernandez to join United next season.

Gill has confirmed that Ferguson is also likely to have further funds at his disposal, but insists the club will not discuss their targets after being linked with the likes of Karim Benzema and Luka Modric.

"I can look you in the eye and tell you straight that we have the transfer funds available to the manager," said Gill.

"Targets have been discussed already, as you'd expect, but it's not our style to talk about names and it never will be."

Meanwhile, Gill is confident that the players have not been distracted by the green and gold protests from United supporters who want the Glazers to give up ownership of the club.

Gill concedes he would prefer not to see green and gold outnumber red and white inside Old Trafford, but he understands the need for fans to voice their opinion.

Speaking to the Manchester United Disabled Supporters Association magazine 'Rollin' Reds', he added: "I've asked the players and they say they are not distracted, but if your question is 'would I prefer all red and white instead of gold and green when you have a full stadium and you are playing host to famous opposition', of course I would.

"If the question is 'would I prefer not to look out of my office and see the scarves they are selling on the street', of course I'd prefer that. But as Alex has said, people have a right to protest.

"Nobody is going to stop that, and in the ground itself we are not going to stop that, but I do object to the obstruction of peoples' view by some banner when they have paid good money for their seats.

"It's not the owners' style to shout from the rooftops, whether United have done well or badly, and while they will continue to review their position on interviews and so forth, I don't see them ever turning into the kind of owners who use the club for their own ego.

"In this job you expect criticism, but if it's advice I ever need I've always Sir Bobby [Charlton] in the boardroom to call upon and Sir Alex is very good, very clear and we talk often."