Man Utd takeover: Ratcliffe's MAJOR blunder revealed as Sheikh Jassim gains confidence

Tom Weber

• 28 Jun 2023 18:28 BST
• 3 min read

The Manchester United takeover saga could finally be coming to an end, at least if Sheikh Jassim's camp is to be believed.

Seven months after the current Red Devils owners, the Glazers, announced that they would be exploring new investment opportunities, including a potential sale of the Manchester club, none of the two major bidders, Sheikh Jassim and Sir Jim Ratcliffe, have been given an update on who the club will be sold to.

With this saga at the risk of dragging on well into the transfer window, it could derail Erik ten Hag's summer plans and potentially ruin his ambitions for next season, which surely include challenging for the Premier League title. This has left supporters frustrated, but even the coach himself has already voiced his displeasure.

Despite the Glazers still dragging their feet in this whole process, there appears to be some significant movement in the Qatari camp.

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Jassim grows in confidence

Sheikh Jassim and his entourage are growing in confidence, writes Bloomberg. That the Qataris are confident of securing a deal isn't news, but the reason behind this enthusiasm has now been revealed.

According to the report, Sir Jim Ratcliffe's proposal of a partial, slow takeover process has caused disconcertion among United's shareholders, fears that don't exist in connection with Jassim's full, 100 per cent buy-out.

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The crux of the issue is the fact that Ratcliffe's offer is structured in a way so that not all shareholders would be bought out, leaving some directors under threat of being sued if it came to light that they had suggested a bid that favoured some shareholders over others.

These grievances were reportedly aired by one shareholder in a letter to the board, which is seen as an expression of widespread 'opposition' to Ratcliffe's bid that would see the controversial Glazers stay on board at United, at least for a time.