Man Utd takeover: Sheikh Jassim ‘optimistic’ as Mbappe to Old Trafford ‘planned since February’
There is ‘increasing optimisim’ in Sheikh Jassim’s camp that they will be named the Glazers’ preferred bidders as a report claims Qatar’s plan to sell Kylian Mbappe to Manchester United has been in the works for some time.
Qatar-based newspaper Al Watan claimed on Monday night that Sheikh Jassim had ‘success’ and there will be an ‘announcement of the deal soon’, but incredibly, as reported by The Athletic, the origins of the story come from a Twitter account based in Cardiff which has barely 300 followers.
The news and subsequent reports online resulted in a huge soar in the club’s stock price, which rose by 24 percent overnight.
It’s claimed that if Sheikh Jassim’s bid was accapted it may take two to three weeks to be ratified, which i state would ‘eat into’ Erik ten Hag’s transfer plans.
There is though said to ‘increasing optimisim’ on Sheikh Jassim’s part due to complications surrounding the bid from his only rival, Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
The INEOS owner has proposed an offer which would allow the Glazers to retain a minority stake with those remaining shares sold at a later date.
Ratcliffe’s bid ‘would use loans and bonds drawn from some of the biggest banks in the world to fund it’, which could prove to be a ‘nightmare’ given the current state of the debt market.
The Glazers selling their remaining shares in the future is also a sticking point as their value will depend on how the club would be valued between now and then.
Sheikh Jassim and Ratfliffe remain ‘in the dark’ but the preferred bidder could be agreed ‘by the weekend’, though we’ve heard this before, many, many times.
A report on Tuesday claimed Sheikh Jassim would ‘love to bring Kylian Mbappe to Man United if his takeover is successful’.
Mbappe made the bombshell announcement this week that he would not be extending his contract at PSG, meaning he will likely be sold this summer.
Sheikh Jassim has apparently told allies he believes the forward ‘belongs at’ United and will therefore attempt to bring him on board. The report suggests he should command a fee in the region of £170million.
If there is to be an injection of cash by Sheikh Jassim in the event he does succeed in his takeover, that fee might well be in reach.
And a further report from El Pais claims Qatar – who already own PSG – has been ‘planning to sell Mbappe to United since February’.
READ MORE: How every Premier League club can sign Kylian Mbappe this summer
