‘Truly awful’ - Gary Neville sends message to Sir Jim Ratcliffe after Man Utd minority purchase agreed

Gary Neville has wished Sir Jim Ratcliffe the ‘very best’ after it was announced on Christmas Eve that his minority purchase of Manchester United has been agreed.

Ratcliffe and his Ineos delegation will oversee football operations at Old Trafford when the necessary regulatory approvals are met and the deal is officially confirmed. That could take a period of around six to eight weeks.

There will also be an investment of $300m (£236m) from Ratcliffe and Ineos to improve club infrastructure, on top of the £1bn used to secure the 25 percent purchase of the club’s shares. The Glazers will, however, remain in ultimate control of the club, and majority owners, circumstances that have irked United’s Supporters’ Trust.

Meanwhile, Neville has said he is pleased with the news of Ratcliffe’s investment and said he hopes it can help get United ‘back to being something respectable’.

“Manchester United 2023 has been a disgrace to the end,” the former defender wrote on X. “The timing of this is truly awful and no functioning organisation would even think about it.

“Anyway all the very best to Jim Radcliffe and I hope he can somehow work out a way to get the club right again and back to being something respectable on and off the pitch.”

Ratcliffe’s takeover also means he will be given the first opportunity to purchase any further shares sold by the Glazers in the future.

Meanwhile, co-chairmen Joel and Avram Glazer said via a statement: “We are delighted to have agreed this deal with Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS. As part of the strategic review we announced in November 2022, we committed to look at a variety of alternatives to help enhance Manchester United, with a focus on delivering success for our men’s, women’s and Academy teams.

“Sir Jim and INEOS bring a wealth of commercial experience as well as significant financial commitment into the Club. And, through INEOS Sport, Manchester United will have access to seasoned high-performance professionals, experienced in creating and leading elite teams from both inside and outside the game. Manchester United has talented people right across the Club and our desire is to always improve at every level to help bring our great fans more success in the future.”