Man Utd takeover ‘agreement’ was ‘close’ before Glazer U-turn as ‘senior sources’ make revelation

Lewis Oldham 23 Oct 2023 11:35 AM

Avram Glazer alongside Sir Alex Ferguson.

Qatar’s Sheikh Jassim was reportedly “close to shaking hands on a deal” with the Glazer family before the Manchester United owners changed their demands.

Man Utd – who are fourth in the 2023 Premier League net spend table – have been on the market since the Glazer family announced last November that they were open to new investment.

Sheikh Jassim and INEOS chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe swiftly emerged as the leading contenders to oust the Glazer family but this process has dragged on for almost a whole year.

Ratcliffe has been open to keep the Glazer family on board with a reduced stake, while Sheikh Jassim has only been interested in a full takeover.

It’s been made clear in recent weeks that the British billionaire is set to win the takeover race as Sheikh Jassim has withdrawn his interest in Man Utd.

Ratcliffe will acquire a 25% stake in the Premier League with a bid worth around £1.5bn but his full takeover is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

Finance expert Kieran Maguire has now claimed that Sheikh Jassim “agreed to increase” his bid “on more than one occasion” but the “terms were changed”.

“I’m not surprised that Qatar completely withdrew,” Maguire told Football Insider.

“Senior sources close to the Sheikh Jassim bid have indicated to me that there was increased frustration towards the conduct of the Glazers.

“On more than one occasion, they had agreed to increase the bid. They had agreed to some concessions as far as the demands of the Glazers were concerned.

“Yet every time that they felt that they were close to shaking hands on a deal, the terms were changed. In the end, they didn’t want to be taken advantage of.

“I think there was a huge sense of frustration because the Jassim team had spent huge sums of money employing bankers, a legal team and accountants to come up with an appropriate valuation.

“All of that money is now being wasted. So I think there’s no good blood between Jassim and the Glazers.“

Over the weekend, Liverpool legend Graeme Souness revealed that he once advised Ratcliffe not to buy a football club.

‘Ratcliffe will know all of these challenges that lie ahead. When I met him, he ended up buying Nice,’ Souness wrote for The Daily Mail.

‘I’m not sure Nice have improved under his stewardship, but the experience will serve him well.

‘He was very impressive, a man of few words. He asked me if it was a good idea buying a club. At the time, he was not in the press every day.

‘I told him overnight he would become a household name, and I asked if he wanted that. He said no. I said, ‘Don’t buy a football club then!’.’

Manchester United Glazers