Man Utd takeover: The state of play as HUGE new details emerge

Tom Weber

• 10 Jul 2023 19:13 BST
• 3 min read

Sheikh Jassim and Sir Jim Ratcliffe both remain firmly in Manchester United takeover contention despite reports to the contrary, according to a BBC journalist.

The takeover saga still has not been resolved. When Bloomberg dropped their bombshell reporting that Sir Jim Ratcliffe's bid is "dead in the water,' it appeared as though this drawn-out process - which has been going on for eight months - was finally coming to a conclusion.

But alas, the situation rumbles on and it seems that no end is in sight. Ratcliffe recently broke his silence on the claims that he had lost out to Jassim by saying: "We have a good offer and we have met with the Glazers a couple of times. We’ve had good discussions with them. We would still very much like to do it."

Now, Ratcliffe's comments have been backed up by BBC journalist Simon Stone.

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The state of play

Stone recently spoke to The United Stand and gave his thoughts on the situation. When asked about whether Ratcliffe is still part of the negotiations, he replied: "I think he is. My understanding is that nothing is off the table."

He also shot down rumours that Sheikh Jassim was frustrated with the Glazers, the current owners, dragging their feet and that the Qatari was considering pulling out of the deal. "We all get told things," Stone said, "there can be frustration from one side or the other."

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"There can be a belief that this is going to happen, or that is going to happen. I was told a rumour the other day that Sheikh Jassim was about to pull out. I checked that, and that was just dismissed."

"There are all kinds of rumours," he continued, "but ultimately people can feel the way they feel. They can be frustrated. They can believe that they're in pole position or that they're behind. It comes back to the Glazers."