‘Knows’ - David Beckham offers surprise Man Utd takeover insight

Manchester United legend David Beckham has seemingly confirmed who he believes is the best candidate to takeover the club, and it's perhaps no surprise to see where his allegiances lie.

A euphoric extra-time win against Brentford on Saturday went a little way to placate frustrated Red Devils supporters who have seen the Glazers drag the club's sale on for months. Two interested parties in Qatari Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and Ineos tycoon Sir Jim Ratcliffe have submitted multiple bids amid the current owners' lofty valuation of the club.

Beckham appeared on Sky Sports over the weekend as he took in the Formula 1 action in Qatar and was quizzed about his preference between the two interested parties linked with the United takeover. Asked about the club's recent performances and Erik ten Hag too, Beckham replied: "I think he's a good coach. It's a difficult time at the moment but there's a lot of noise around the club at the moment so it can't be easy for him.

"We all want that noise to go away and we all want a decision to be made. For the club, for the fans, for the players and for the manager as well, because we are one of the if not the biggest club in the world and we want stability, and I think that's the most important thing

"We all have our favourites of who we feel needs to run the club and look after the club and take the club back to where it belongs, but in our eyes, in the fans' eyes, we're number one and we want to be back at the top, and I believe I know the right people to do that."

Having pussyfooted around the question, the former winger was then asked if he was referring directly to Qatari bidder Sheikh Jassim - to which he smirked and said, "we'll see".

Beckham, of course, worked in Qatar during the World Cup 2022 on an ambassadorial deal to promote the event. That role came under fire with comedian Joe Lycett famously 'shredding' £10,000 after Beckham's silence to criticism - it later emerged he had donated the money to charity.

In Qatar, homosexuality is criminalised and can carry a seven-year prison sentence, with members of the LGBTQ+ community subject to violence. Speaking at the premiere of his Netflix documentary last week, Beckham defended his choice to promote Qatar. When asked if he had done his research on human rights in the country, he said: "I always do that. Let the football do the talking, it was a great tournament, a lot of people were happy.

"I had a lot of conversations with the LGBTQ community when I was there. They said they had enjoyed the games and they felt it was the safest World Cup they'd had for a long time, it was an important competition and one I was proud to be a part of."