Man Utd takeover news: Qatar’s ‘watching brief’ with full sale of the club ‘likely’

Manchester United’s good form on the pitch suffered a slight blip last week, with points dropped in Premier League trips to Crystal Palace and Arsenal.

The Red Devils are also not expected to complete any major transfers in the January window, with cut-price deals or loan moves the most likely source of recruitment. Much of that is due to the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the club’s long-term future and ownership. The Glazers announced in November that they were ‘exploring strategic alternatives’ for United, which included ‘new investment into the club, a sale, or other transactions involving the company’.

But according to the Daily Mail, a full buy-out of the Red Devils is looking ever more likely. They add a complete sale is more appealing to interested parties and is expected to be completed, with the process set to move into a formal stage in the next ‘three to four weeks’.

A number of parties have been linked with a possible takeover, including US investors, companies such as Amazon and Apple, but the UK’s richest man, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, is the only potential buyer who has publicly declared their interest in purchasing the 20-time English champions.

There has also been speculation in recent months that Middle-Eastern investors could attempt to buy the club. As per The Athletic, Qatar are keeping a ‘watching brief’ on the latest at Old Trafford, with a bid unlikely at this stage. The outlet claim that Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) have no intention of walking away from Paris Saint-Germain, making a move for United ‘improbable’. QSI have registered an interest in the Red Devils but have held no formal meetings with the Glazers.

PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi has, however, met Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy, with a minority investment in Spurs discussed.

Meanwhile, The Athletic adds that the Red Devils ‘expect a consortium to emerge from Saudi Arabia, despite the Saudi Public Investment Fund already owning Newcastle United’.