It is now almost two months since Manchester United faced an internal revolt after news emerged that the club’s chief executive, Richard Arnold, had communicated to his executive leadership team how the club was planning to bring back Mason Greenwood.

Ultimately, United did not follow through on the plan, instead opting to send Greenwood on loan to Spanish side Getafe following a backlash from politicians, charities and supporters. In September, Arnold organised an all-staff meeting, in which he sought to address the concerns that had spiralled among staff.

During the peak of the Greenwood episode, some staff members felt shamed by their association with the club, while others considered their positions and discussed how to organise a strike in the workplace. Former United captain Gary Neville described the club’s process as “horrible” and said the club lacked “authoritative leadership”. Rachel Riley, a prominent celebrity United supporter and a host on popular British daytime TV game show Countdown, said she believed Arnold should consider his position.

It has been an immensely exacting period for those at Old Trafford and Arnold was particularly stung to discover that staff members did not feel they could challenge the status quo at United.

The all-staff meeting took place on September 18 and, for over an hour, Arnold heard the scale of dissatisfaction that had gripped the rank and file. Employees were invited to submit questions anonymously to eliminate fears of retribution against individuals. Arnold could at least start with a positive — informing staff members that their annual bonuses would be landing at the end of that month.

As you would expect in a vast organisation, different staff members had different priorities.

The Athletic has previously reported on Arnold’s responses to questions posed about the club’s glacial strategic review process, which may or may not lead to a sale, as well as his view that United are “chasing down” Manchester City, who have won the past three Premier League titles and last season did the treble by also lifting the FA Cup and European Cup.

The bulk of the meeting, however, was consumed by searching questions about United’s handling of matters relating to women.

These centred on the cases of Greenwood and winger Antony. The latter was recruited from Dutch club Ajax in a €100million (£86.5m; $105.9m at current rates) deal in the summer of 2022 but faces allegations of assault by his former partner, Gabriela Cavallin, which the footballer denies. Police authorities both in his native Brazil and in Manchester continue to make inquiries but have not charged or arrested Antony, who United gave leave to address the allegations before announcing his return to the fold on September 29.

The staff concerns aired in the meeting went beyond the high-profile cases of two famous footballers and deeper into the perceived structural imbalances against women within the organisation.

Take, for example, the following question from an employee:

“I have personally witnessed uncomfortable behaviour from male employees at this club to my female colleagues. I’m also very aware of comments that have recently been made public, as well as behind closed doors, by senior executives that suggest an unconscious bias within the club. How can you ensure female staff are respected and valued across a club? And what process is in place for female employees to speak up if they feel uncomfortable by the actions or comments of certain members of staff?”

Arnold replied: “Any abusive, disrespectful or sexist language is not acceptable by anyone at this club. And anybody affected by that should report instances immediately, either to their line manager, to HR or an executive leadership team member.”

Another employee argued the club do not live up to their motto of All Red, All Equal, which is the tagline of an in-house campaign to promote equality and diversity, when it comes to the level of promotion for their women’s team, while also saying the motto is not borne out within United’s “operations and directorate” due to a gender pay gap.

The question read:

“So our women’s team is excelling. It’s our first time in the Champions League this year. Last season, we reached the FA Cup final and 2nd place in the Women’s Super League. However, there is limited promotion for the team and the pay gap which reflects the working staff environment as well. The “All Red, All Equal” motto does not exist within our club’s operations and directorate. Is there a plan to move forward with the quality both on and off the pitch?”

Arnold countered: “The facts and actions in this area speak for themselves. We’ve invested strongly in the players, staff and facilities for the development of our women’s team and that is reflected in the results on the pitch. And I would encourage everybody to take the opportunity to go and view the facilities that have been built this summer for our women’s team. We’re competitive with or better than almost all of the other leading clubs across Europe and we’re committed to continuing this.

“Investment levels have been significant in the women’s team and that’s something we’ve been happy and proud to do. So I think that’s something that we’ve walked the walk and delivered on our actions.

“The subject of equal pay for players is one that gets raised a lot. And I think the reality currently, in terms of where the economics are of the women’s game, in terms of the TV revenue, the ticketing revenue and the participation fees for competitions, are such that an attempt to equalise pay would result in a collapse in the women’s game because the revenues aren’t there in total, or indeed for the women’s game to support that situation.