Man Utd takeover news: Up to eight ‘offers’ this week, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s ‘advantage’ & Qatar PL ‘resistance’

There could be as many as eight offers to buy Manchester United before Wednesday’s deadline, according to reports.

The Raine Group - the investment banking firm who are handling the club’s sale - have told interested parties that second bids to purchase United must be submitted this week, with the Telegraph’s James Ducker claiming that deadline is 9pm on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Sky Sports’ Kaveh Solhekol tweeted to say ‘more than five’ bids will be made, but it could be up to eight. “[The] Glazer family will sell but only for the right price. If they don’t get the asking price, they’ll raise capital to invest in the club and pay down debt,” he added.

Solhekol claimed in a separate tweet that there is no favourite at this stage and the Qatari and Ineos delegations were the only interested parties to visit Manchester last week. Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani’s representatives visited Old Trafford and Carrington on Thursday and received presentations from club employees. Sir Jim Ratcillfe also visited the stadium and training ground on Friday and briefly met manager Erik ten Hag.

The UK’s richest man, who owns Ineos, told the Wall Street Journal that he will not pay a ‘stupid’ price for the club. “How do you decide the price of a painting? How do you decide the price of a house? It’s not related to how much it cost to build or how much it cost to paint. What you don’t want to do is pay stupid prices for things because then you regret it subsequently,” he said.

The Independent also claim that Ineos’ offer to buy United is seen as ‘cleaner’ and wouldn’t be met with the same concerns as a Qatar-led takeover. The company’s experience in running sports ventures already in football and cycling is an advantage, with Ratcliffe already having people in mind who could fulfil key roles at the club.

Meanwhile, should Sheikh Jassim win the bidding war, it could be met with ‘significant resistance’ from other Premier League clubs due to the fear that it might ‘perpetually destroy the division’s competitive balance’.

They add the Qatari offer is expected to increase this week, but whether it will be greater than Ineos’ valuation and match the Glazers’ asking price remains the ‘big questions’. The Independent also claim that Sheikh Jassim will try to ‘pay the right price’, while there has been some caution given the ‘circus’ that perpetually surrounds Qatar-owned Paris Saint-Germain.