Journalist Ben Jacobs has claimed that any takeover of Manchester United would likely take some time to complete, despite hopes that a deal could be agreed in March.
What’s the latest on Man United’s ownership?
Since the Glazer family put the club up for sale, there have been a number of bids launched, and there was an initial soft deadline in February as the aim was to complete a sale in March.
However, despite bids from Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim Bin Mohammed Al-Thani, there is no indication yet that a deal is nearing completion.
Speaking on UnitedPeoplesTV, Jacobs claimed that a deal was always going to take a long time to complete.
“So right from day one, those close to Sheikh Jassim said it will take as long as it takes,” he stated.”There’s not this delay narrative in their head, there’s not this twist notion that the glazers have moved from a March completion to and end of Season completion.”It’s always been the case from all sides, at least who I’ve spoken to, that it will take as long as it takes because that’s just how a takeover works. It’s not a process you don’t bid and then get the keys to the club.”It’s not like doing a deal on deadline day where if your offer is sufficient, then you’re in very quickly with a signature. It takes a number of lawyers, a number of strategic meetings, a number of back and forth, the price will change come what may and that’s why we have to be very cautious about reading too much into these indicative offers.”When could a takeover happen?Recent reports have indicated that the Glazers are yet to receive an offer which matches their asking price of £6bn, and both Ratcliffe and Al-Thani have faced scrutiny following their bids.There is concern that Ratcliffe’s consortium could use the club for greenwashing, as his company INEOS could take ownership to raise their profile following environmental issues.Meanwhile, there are worries that Al-Thani’s consortium could be linked to the government of Qatar, and this has sparked much debate over state-backed clubs in the Premier League and their role in sportswashing.It, therefore, appears that a takeover is unlikely to happen within the next month, but fans will hope for more clarity by the end of the season, so the club can operate effectively in the transfer market to back manager Erik ten Hag.