Manchester United's Head of Academy Nick Cox explained the five 'non-negotiable' values of the club.
United have had a disastrous start to their new campaign under Erik ten Hag. A 2-1 home defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion was followed by a 4-0 mauling at the hands of Brentford.
The Red Devils are currently sitting at the bottom spot in the Premier League table. Ten Hag, the man brought in to help the club return to its glory days, has to find a way to get his team back on track.
He may need to instill the values of UNITED in his players, which are as mentioned in the club's charter: United, Non-discriminatory, Innovative, Team-orientated, Excelling, and Determined.
To add to that, there is another set of rules that every player wearing a Manchester United jersey should follow. While speaking on the High Performance Podcast (h/t mirror.co.uk), Cox elaborated on the concept.
Then there are five rules, whose acronyms form the word BATON, inherited from the club's history. These five 'non-negotiable' rules are Brave, Adaptable, Together. Optimistic, and Now.
Cox explained:
"At Manchester United we spent a lot of time with the staff, with the players, workshopping what behaviours are important, what values are important to you and we came up with five words as an acronym that spell out the word: BATON.
"We’re carrying the baton of Jimmy Murphy, one of the forefathers of youth development, go back to Munich. Matt Busby passed on the baton. We’ve got to be Brave, Adaptable, Together, Optimistic and the ‘N’ stood for nobody else but us and no other time but now."
Manchester United eyeing a move for Real Madrid star Casemiro
Manchester United are looking to acquire the signature of Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro in this transfer window. They have reportedly placed a bid of £60 million and are ready to double the Brazilian's salary.
The Red Devils were keen on signing Adrien Rabiot from Juventus. However, they couldn't come to terms with the player and the deal is currently off. The Manchester side have since shifted their focus to Casemiro, according to Fabrizio Romano.
Casemiro has had a massively successful career at Real Madrid, winning five Champions League titles and three La Liga trophies with the club. He has made 336 appearances for Los Blancos across competitions, scoring 31 goals and providing 29 assists. Whether he chooses to join a club that won't participate in Europe's top competition next season remains to be seen.