Prospective buyers of Manchester United are set to be told that the current owners – the Glazers – will not budge from their £6billion asking price for the club, according to reports.
The Glazers had set a 10pm deadline for bids to be lodged on Friday night to buy the club, with both Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Qatari Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani putting in offers.
Al Thani’s bid to take over United in its entirety is thought to be over the £4bn mark, while Britain’s richest man Ratcliffe’s is believed to be short of that.
However the INEOS founder could match the bid from Qatar by making 25 per cent of the club available for fans to buy.
But the Sun is reporting that neither bid will be enough to shake loose the unpopular American owners, who will reportedly resolutely hold out for £6bn.
A source reportedly claimed: ‘It’s still not clear if the Glazers actually want to sell and — if they do — it will only be for top dollar.
‘It’s possible they are keener on a partial sale rather than a full one at this stage — as that might value the club higher.
‘What is obvious is that they want to maximise their profits by selling at their preferred price or not at all.
‘The other possibility nobody is discounting is they will simply decide that none of the bids is anywhere near what they want and call it off, in the hope that the market conditions change in their favour in a year or so.’
The Glazers are thought to own around two thirds of the club, and the INEOS founder is keen to take on their stake in the club, while Al Thani is eager to own the club in its entirety.
Al Thani is the frontrunner to take over United, which would mean the club would become the third Premier League team effectively taken over by a Middle Eastern energy-rich state, with Abu Dhabi of the United Arab Emirates owning Manchester City and Saudi Arabia controlling Newcastle.
Yet Manchester-born Ratcliffe, who made his billions in petro chemicals by founding INEOS, is the fans’ favourite.
One survey shows more than two thirds favoured his bid in preference to United being taken over by a Qatari banker.
Sheikh Jassim claims to be a private individual unconnected to their government, but is chairman of the Qatar Islamic Bank and its major shareholder is the nation’s sovereign wealth fund, Qatar Investment Authority (QIA).
Many United fans will perhaps receive the latest report with anxiety, with the prospect of the Glazers rejected both bids and continuing in their role set to be a hugely unpopular one.
SOURCE: dailymail.co.uk
