Sheikh Jassim will reportedly not come back with a new bid to become Manchester United’s new owner but remains a supporter of the club and wishes them well for the future. The Qatari banker withdrew from the bidding war after his £5billion offer for a 100 per cent stake was rejected.
But according to Sky Sports, he holds no ill will towards the Red Devils and wants to see them rise back up to the top of English football once again. Some part of the fanbase still had slim hopes that the billionaire may return with a new bid or make another takeover approach in the future. However, Sky Sports claim he has now fully walked away from making a deal and has no current plans to bid again.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe is now set to purchase 25 per cent of the club for more than £1.25bn. But one of United’s biggest shareholders, Nick Train, of UK fund manager Lindsell Train, recently told the Financial Times that investors have been left in the dark over Ratcliffe’s proposal.
“I’ve got to assume that we’re closer to some sort of an announcement or crystallisation of value but who knows when or quite what shape it will take if the rumours are correct. I’ve no basis for knowing if they are or not, “he said.
Manchester United’s board is expected to vote on Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s bid in the coming days – although exactly when that will be is unknown. The vote was expected to take place last month but Ratcliffe and the INEOS group will have to wait a little while longer before hearing about the fate of their bid after the meeting was delayed in the middle of October.
As part of the deal, Ratcliffe is proposing to invest £245m into the refurbishment of Old Trafford. Gary Neville said of the investment: “What we need to hear is the full proposal and how it is going to work.
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“You don’t sit here as a Manchester United fan wholly impressed by the idea of £245m going in to improve the stadium because we know that Real Madrid and Barcelona are spending a billion to get their stadiums right with a full refit, and we know that other clubs have spent significantly more.
“So we know that is not actually going to touch the sides properly of a full refurb of Old Trafford, but what it is is a significant amount of money – and Sir Jim Ratcliffe is a smart and successful businessman. He’s not going to put £245m into something and let it go down the drain, so I suspect it is probably the first instalment of some sort of plan that means that they will phase the refurbishment of the stadium over two or three different seasons. It sounds to me like they will do it in phases.”
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