‘Lot of games taking place’ – Man United’s takeover talks still nowhere near completion

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Manchester United’s takeover process appears to be the gift that just keeps on giving, with senior journalist, Ben Jacobs, noting that there’s still work to do in order to get this deal over the line.

The last information that appeared to be official in the sense that most media were covering it was that there was a third and supposedly final round of bidding, after which a period of exclusivity would be granted to a ‘preferred bidder.’

As of this moment, the club are still not at the point of announcing the same, and with only a fortnight left until the end of the current campaign, that’s negligent on the part of the Glazer family at best.

Not only is it negligent, but Jacobs notes there are ‘games’ going on behind the scenes.

‘The Manchester United sale process is slowly progressing even though at the time of writing (Tuesday morning) there is no preferred bidder,’ he wrote in his exclusive CaughtOffside Substack.

‘Raine Group, who are handling the sale, are now talking to both Sir Jim Ratcliffe and representatives from Sheikh Jassim’s Nine Two Foundation. There are a lot of games taking place, which is normal at this stage, especially for a transaction of this magnitude.

‘Sir Jim Ratcliffe is “cautiously optimistic” his offer for ‘control’ will succeed. But as of last week, he was not informed he was the preferred bidder. It’s a flexible bid that allows Joel and Avram to stay at the club but without their Class B voting power.

‘INEOS’ talks with Raine, at least as of Monday night, can’t be construed as a negotiation. INEOS were simply asked some technical questions on their final offer.

‘Sheikh Jassim hasn’t given up. There is confusion over the Nine Two Foundation’s offer and whether it is lower than anticipated because it’s inclusive of pledged investment. Sources close to the group are adamant it is “competitive”, though, maintaining around £0.8bn is on top of a club valuation of around £5bn.

‘Sheikh Jassim, via intermediaries, is expected to hold further talks this week, described by sources as in-depth. There is no guarantee his offer will be raised, but the feeling is it will need to be in order to stand a chance of succeeding.

‘Reports a bid has already been improved to £6bn are wide of the mark to my understanding. The official deadlines are gone and talks are more fluid now. So any bid would likely not be disclosed and be tabled in a less formal manner.’

The issue in hand other than the future of the club in general is how Erik ten Hag is going to be able to make the signings he desires with so much upheaval going on behind the scenes.

It isn’t clear if the Dutchman knows how much money he will have to spend, what targets are achievable, and what timeframe he has in order to be able to secure his targets.

If the Red Devils qualify for the Champions League as expected, an upgrade in the squad is evidently necessary, so it’s incumbent on all of those looking to conclude the deal to do so in a timely fashion.

More Stories Avram Glazer Ben Jacobs Erik ten Hag Glazer Family Joel Glazer Sheikh Jassim Sir Jim Ratcliffe

1 Comment

  1. Get the Gaziers on a one way ticket to Mars , without oxygen , money rich arsholes that know shit about football , just creaming money out of supporters pockets , they are as hated as much as Hitler , much the same as him .

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