Man Utd takeover: Gary Neville disputes ‘decision’ made by Glazers amid £10bn claim

Manchester United’s owners the Glazers are set to take the club off the market, according to reports.

The club announced in November that they were ‘exploring strategic alternatives’ which could include a sale. Since then, there has been a drawn-out and much-publicised saga surrounding a potential sale of the club, with only Qatar’s Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al Thani, and Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos consortium, left in the bidding process.

But both parties could end up frustrated, however, with the Daily Mail claiming the Glazers no longer plan to sell as they have not received an offer close to their valuation. “The logic for taking United off the market now, says the source, is that the Glazer family will try to sell the club again in 2025, when they hope financial and ‘environmental’ factors may attract more bidders,” the outlet add.

The Glazers reportedly believe that the expanded Club World Cup, which takes place in the USA in 2025, will see TV revenues increase dramatically in the coming years, and could subsequently see the club’s value grow to somewhere between £7bn and £10bn. The Mail also claim both Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe are ‘frustrated’ with the ongoing process and have been given ‘no indication’ of where they stand.

Yet, journalist Ben Jacobs has disputed those reports and states ‘little has changed’ in the takeover process, but said on Twitter that no sale is a very real possibility. Jacobs adds that ‘multiple groups are still involved in negotiations’, with the Glazers yet to make a decision.

The reports in the Mail also come a little over a week after the Sun claimed that Sheikh Jassim’s takeover of United would be completed by October. Regardless, Gary Neville feels that suggestions the Glazers won’t sell are wide of the mark. “I don’t believe the Glazers not selling/doing anything story,” the former defender wrote on Twitter. 

“They have to do something. They’ve run out of money and the financial situation is desperate. They need investment in. They’re also having a toxic impact on the club from the inside out.

“The negligence continues for now but I don’t think it can go on without some action on raising funds. Also who would come in as a minority alongside them with the damage it would do to their reputation.”