Nearly nine months have gone since the Glazer family said they were open to offers for Manchester United, and the sale finally looks on the verge of completion.
Bids from Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and Sir Jim Ratcliffe have remained on the table as the owners make arragements to reach a decision on the future of the Premier League club. Now, after an extensive and drawn-out process, it is being claimed that the Qatari bid is set to be announced as the winner.
Not only that, but the price is tipped to reach a huge £7.2-7.3bn, even greater than the world record sums anticipated earlier in the deal. That price tag comes not from United themselves but rather from Cardiff City chairman Mehmet Dalman, who has spoken about the rising cost of football clubs in the Premier League and beyond.
“I’ve been meeting a lot with US private equity funds and the valuation of football clubs is going through the roof,” Dalman told The BBC. “Americans are keen to come into this market quite heavily..
“I spoke to the owners of Leeds when we were there, and Championship clubs are valued at three times their revenue, give or take. Manchester United are going to announce their sale at £7.2bn-7.3bn, which is roughly 10 times over their revenue.
“Two or three years ago, we might have been talking about selling Cardiff for about £20m or £30m but now you’re going to have to look at £90m or £100m. Valuations [of Championship clubs] have all stretched. In terms of the money spent, you have a better chance of getting it back in this environment than you ever have before.”
Man Utd Fans do you think this sale is the best thing for Man Utd? Have your say in the comments section
Earlier reports suggested Sheikh Jassim has made a breakthrough in his efforts to finaly take over Manchester United
Earlier in August, The Sun reported in it’s news that Sheikh Jassim had made a breakthrough and was set to win the race. Their reports carried a figure of £6bn, though, rather than the significantly higher number mentioned by Dalman.
The Glazer family have owned Manchester United since 2005, having taken a stake in the club in the years before that. However, their ownership has proved unpopular with sections of the fanbase who have embarked on a number of protests.
It had been believed the major sticking point over the current sale process was a difference of opinion between different members of the family. Brothers Joel and Avram are the more active of the siblings when it comes to Manchester United, and reports suggested they weren’t ready to relinquish their share entirely.
United’s Adidas home shirt is made up of the same colour of the city’s iconic red rose and features a black collar. The collar also features a splash of both red and white, giving it a slick and modernised look.
Despite the takeover uncertainty looming all summer, United have still been able to add to their squad. Erik ten Hag has added more than £150m worth of new talent to his side in the form of Andre Onana, Mason Mount and Rasmus Hojlund.
He transfered players like Onana and Mount are in line for competitive debuts on Monday, when United host Wolves in the Premier League. Hojlund, however, will have to wait a little longer as he continues his recovery from an injury sustained in pre-season.
“We know without him we have also a strong team and the position is covered so we don’t rush in this,” Ten Hag said of the Dane. “It is all about him in the right level, the first fitness level and then we have to integrate him, training and bring him in for the games so we take our time.”
Chelsea vs Liverpool player ratings Performance : Know the man of the match
The Chelsea vs Liverpool player ratings were a lot of fun to dish out as two big six teams both went for it at Stamford Bridge. The outcome was amazing.
A 1-1 draw saw Luis Diaz score early after a strong start from Liverpool but Axel Disasi equalized and both teams had several chances to win in the west London sunshine.
Below we give marks out of 10 for every player, as the two Premier League heavyweights put on a fantastic show going forward but their limitations, especially in defensive midfield, were clear to see.
Chelsea player ratings performance (3-5-2)
Robert Sanchez: 6 – Didn’t have much to do but distribution was good and accurate. As always. Good claim at a corner late on to start a counter where he helped Chelsea almost won it.
Axel Disasi: 7 – Got a Premier League debut goal and looked pretty solid defensively. Good start seen from him.
Thiago Silva: 7 – Always in the right position and at the age of 38 keeps getting better.
Levi Colwill: 6 – Had a tough time against Mohamed Salah in the first half but better in the second. Needs to improve distribution.
Reece James: 7.5 – Such an attacking force and this wing-back role allows him to stay forward for longer. Subbed off in second half as it looked like he had a small knock.
Enzo Fernandez: 8 – Linked up really well with James and Sterling. His class on the ball is clear and he is the heartbeat of this Chelsea side. Man of the match goes to him.
Conor Gallagher: 6 – Worked hard in a deeper central midfield role but couldn’t impact the game.
Carney Chukwuemeka: 6 – Some nice touches when he did get on the ball and improved as game went on.
Ben Chilwell: 7 – Assist on Disasi’s goal, thought he had one himself but ruled out for offside. Fantastic energy and got forward so well.
Raheem Sterling: 7 – Worked hard and linked up well with James but the final pass or cross just didn’t happen for him.
Nicolas Jackson: 6 – See above. Plenty of good runs behind Liverpool’s defense but missed his one big chance from six yards out in the first half. Worked so hard up top and his brilliant work on the counter almost led to a late, late winner.
Substitutes
Malo Gusto (76′ on for James): 6 – Did okay defensively at right back.
Mykhailo Mudryk (81′ on for Sterling): 5 – Couldn’t impact the game and Jackson couldn’t quite find him to score a late winner.
Ian Maatsen (81′ on for Chukwuemeka): 6 – Worked hard but didn’t get on the ball enough.
Lesley Ugochukwu (90′ on for Chilwell): N/A
Liverpool player ratings performance (4-3-3)
Alisson: 6 – Didn’t have much to do but did well to smother Jackson’s first half effort.
Trent Alexander-Arnold: 6 – Lovely ball forward for Salah’s disallowed goal. Involved heavily early on but faded. Did he switch off for Disasi’s goal? Klopp was angry with some of his distribution choices.
Ibrahima Konate: 6 – Caught out by Jackson’s pace on a few occasions and was dragged out of position as he stepped high.
Virgil van Dijk: 6 – One rasping effort which just flew over. Defensively okay but at times Jackson exposed his dwindling pace.
Andy Robertson: 5 – Had a tough outing. James and Sterling cut him out and with little defensive help from Gakpo ahead of him.
Alexis Mac Allister: 6 – Pinged a lovely ball out to Salah for Diaz’s goal but then faded. Couldn’t firmly control the tempo of the game from a deeper role. Late on he got a simple pass wrong with Nunez clean through.
Dominik Szoboszlai: 7 – Very impressive debut. Lovely balance on the ball, great energy shown in midfield and was very good in the first half. Promising.
Cody Gakpo: 5 – Struggled to insert his presence in the game from a deeper position in midfield. Worked hard but aside from one run he struggled.
Mohamed Salah: 7 – Lovely ball to Diaz for the early goal, but VAR ruled it out for a slight offside. Subbed off in the second half and wasn’t delighted by it. Had the beating of Colwill in the first half. He assisted Luis Diaz to score and that makes him the man of the match for Liverpool side.
Diogo Jota: 5 – Really struggled at the start to get up to the pace of the game in a more central role. Took a heavy whack in the first half and subbed off early in the second.
Luis Diaz: 7 – Took his goal well and made some dangerous runs in-behind from the left.
Substitutes
Darwin Nunez (66′ on for Jota): 6 – Smashed a shot which deflected just wide late on.
Curtis Jones (66′ on for Gakpo): 6 – Worked hard to get on the ball and made some good runs.
Harvey Elliott (77′ on for Salah): 6 – Busy as ever and tried to get on the ball.
Ben Doak (77′ on for Diaz): 6 – Did his best to shore things up defensively.