The Qatari group led by Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani are increasingly confident that they have won the race to buy Manchester United, Bloomberg report.
United have been up for sale since late November, but the takeover process has been delayed with the Glazers’ reluctant to choose a preferred buyer.
Sheikh Jassim and Sir Jim Ratcliffe have both made proposals to purchase the Red Devils, but Bloomberg claim that the former is now the front-runner.
The structure of Ratcliffe’s offer has provoked opposition from minority shareholders, who would not be bought out. Sheikh Jassim is prepared to do so.
Those within the inner circle of the Qatari bid have started communicating their confidence of victory and feel it is a matter of time before an announcement is made.
Meanwhile, it is reported that United have £260 million available for transfers, but with Financial Fair Play rules in place, not all of this amount would be spent.
Bloomberg conclude that the Glazers could yet decide to retain the club by accepting a minority investment to renovate Old Trafford and its facilities.
United fans will be hoping for a quick takeover
The Red Devils have had a quiet start to the summer transfer window. With a limited pre-sales budget, they have been focusing on just one player in Mason Mount.
United need to speed up the process in the coming weeks. A takeover from Sheikh Jassim would be beneficial. He could provide funds up front for the club to spend.
While the budget won’t change due to FFP concerns, manager Erik ten Hag would prefer to make new signings first before offloading fringe players, instead of vice-versa.
The Glazers have not spent a penny from their own pockets since taking over the club in 2005. We can’t expect any favours from them during this summer’s transfer window.
Hopefully, the takeover saga will end soon with Sheikh Jassim becoming the new owner.
