Qatar’s Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim are in the dark about the Glazers’ thinking and timetable for Man United’s sale, with stories of the Briton being in pole position believed to be a game for even BIGGER squeeze out bids
- Ratcliffe’s bidding team has been given no indication of where they currently stand
- They find their offer to leave the Glazers with 20 percent of the club attractive
- Bidder Ratcliffe is eyeing a move for Graham Potter to become Nice manager
Both of the main bidders for Manchester United are in the dark about Glazers’ thinking and the timetable for an eventual sale.
Sources close to both Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim of Qatar believe that stories of Ratcliffe now in pole position may in fact be part of a strategic play by New York bankers Raine to drive even bigger bids from both sides. to squeeze.
Ratcliffe’s bid team would have been given no indication of where they currently stand, but feel comfortable their offer to leave the Glazers with 20 per cent of the club is attractive.
It’s not clear how such a deal would come about, as a further 31 percent of the club is owned by non-Glazer shareholders.
But if Ratcliffe bought 49 per cent of the Glazers’ current 69 per cent for at least £2.5bn, it would value the club at more than £5bn.
Qatar’s Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheik Jassim in the dark over Glazers’ sale of Manchester United
Stories of Ratcliffe now in pole position may, in fact, be part of strategic play
Those aware of Sheikh Jassim of Qatar’s thinking expect rumors to persist about the ebb and flow of the auction
United’s share price on the New York Stock Exchange had fallen to $18.12 (£14.54) by close of trading on Friday, giving the club a market capitalization of $2.96 billion (£2.38 billion) .
Any sale over £5bn would be extraordinary, and yet it seems Raine and the Glazers still think they can get more.
Those aware of Sheikh Jassim’s thinking expect rumors to continue to circulate about the ebb and flow of the auction, and the sheikh remains in the dark about when things will finally end or which way they will go.
There is an acceptance that Raine and/or the Glazers may just be trying to maximize the sale price, but Sheikh Jassim also remains confident in his bid of around £5bn for 100 per cent of the club.
“Ultimately it’s up to the Glazers what they want to do and where we go,” a source said.
“The process has always been very fluid and, crucially, never had a set time frame – although the fans would obviously like one for understandable reasons.”