Manchester United blast 'stupid and irresponsible' urban climbers who broke into Old Trafford before Michael Carrick testimonial that prompted full police search days after city attack

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This shocking footage captures the moment four urban climbers break into Old Trafford – in another embarrassing episode which raises serious questions about security at Manchester United's home.

The clip shows the youngsters gain access to the roof of the iconic stadium, race across the famous pitch and sit in the dugout without being challenged.

Shot in the early hours of Sunday – with the city still on high alert following the Manchester bombing – the footage then shows the group exiting through a door before they make their escape after finally being spotted by staff.  

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Freerunner Rikke Brewer and his fellow parkour enthusiasts broke into Old Trafford

The group's actions raised serious questions about security at Manchester United's home

United, who were left with red faces last year when a pair of youngsters slept at the stadium overnight after sneaking off following a tour, have launched a full-scale investigation.

They have branded the quartet's actions, which took place on a day when 130,000 headed to the area for Michael Carrick's testimonial and a concert at the nearby cricket ground in aid of those who perished in the Manchester bombing 'stupid and irresponsible'.

The video shows the group, who appear to be based in the south, travelling to Manchester.

First they pay their respects at the St Ann's Square memorial to the 23 who died when a suicide bomber struck at Manchester Arena and filmed armed police officers who smile for the camera.

Then they head to the Hilton Hotel, the tallest building in the city which is used by celebrities and footballers.

The youngsters documented their adventure with a video posted on Youtube

At the Hilton, they manage to sneak in through an open door and make their way unchallenged to the Cloud Bar on the 23rd floor. When faced with a locked door, they leave.

From there they go to what appears to be the Mercure Hotel, where they tightrope the edge of the wall, high above the ground.

Police arrive and appear to challenge the group - but with an officer warning one member for wasting police time, one announces to camera that they will go to Old Trafford.

Outside the Theatre of Dreams, they claim a security guard ignores them before climbing up one of the stand walls using external cables as a ladder.

The freerunners were able to gain access to the ground with remarkable ease

In stunning scenes, the group then jog along the Stretford End roof. One sits on the ledge, dangling his feet over the side.

They then make their way down through the stands to the pitch.

Again, seemingly unchallenged, they film themselves in the dugout before running from one corner of the turf to other, pulling off gleeful somersaults as they go.

With day breaking they make their escape through a door and eventually are spotted by security staff but manage to get away.

United slammed those responsible, branding their actions 'stupid and irresponsible' and say a full search of the stadium was carried out following the intrusion. 

The foursome climbed up one of the stand walls using external cables as a ladder

A spokesman said: 'In the early hours of last Sunday morning, stadium security chased four urban climbers off the premises at Old Trafford after they had gained access to the stadium illegally, by scaling the outer works area of the stadium and gaining access to the roof. 

'Such efforts appear to be motivated by a trend for similar actions on social media and followed a successful attempt to climb to the roof of a city centre hotel earlier that day. 

'Their stupid and irresponsible actions, especially at such a sensitive time, put last Sunday's game at risk and occupied both club staff and, more importantly, police officers in hours of work to make sure that the stadium was safe to stage the match.

'The response of the police was outstanding. With over 130,000 people coming into the Old Trafford area on Sunday, the last thing they needed was to have their time wasted in this way. But as ever, they conducted a thorough search of the stadium to confirm it was safe to hold the match.

The group then jogged along the Stretford End roof, showing absolutely no signs of fear

'The security of fans attending games at Old Trafford is our highest priority and we work constantly with all local authorities and security contractors and advisors to keep all security measures, systems and protocols under constant review. The fact that the necessary checks were carried out in time for the game to go ahead is testament to those close relationships.'

Police confirmed they were called at 6.54am and say the intruders had left the scene by the time they arrived.

United will once again review security. They were left embarrassed when two youngsters stayed overnight following a stadium tour before eventually being thrown out during their match with Arsenal the following day.

One of the men sat on the ledge of the roof, dangling his feet over the side with the pitch below

Last May, the stadium was evacuated and the match with Bournemouth was abandoned after a fan spotted what appeared to be a bomb in a toilet.

It later transpired that the bomb was a dummy device mistakenly left behind on a training exercise and not picked up in pre-match searches of the 76,000 venue.

Old Trafford is not the only venue to have been struck by urban climbers with West Ham's London Stadium and Arsenal's Emirates Stadium also targeted.

Sportsmail has contacted the Hilton and Mercure hotels for comment.

They then made their way down through the stands and on to the hallowed turf

It's not the first time Brewer and his friends have performed a stunt like this, having hit headlines when they jumped the fence at Twickenham last month.

On that occasion they climbed to the top of the rugby arena and claimed to have spent seven hours unchallenged by security just hours before Prince Harry attended the British Army verses Royal Navy rugby match there. 

Brewer and two accomplices also broke into Twickenham Stadium last month