UAE ‘serious’ on Man Utd takeover as one ‘very key’ detail to ‘restart talks’ as ‘approach rejected in last 24 hours’

According to reports, a UAE consortium have had a ‘formal takeover approach rejected’ by Manchester United in the ‘last 24 hours’.

There has been significant upheaval at Man Utd over the past couple of years as INEOS chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe has taken control of football operations at Old Trafford.

At the start of 2024, Ratcliffe fended off competition from Qatari businessman Sheikh Jassim to purchase a 27.7% minority stake in the Premier League giants for around £1.25bn.

Ratcliffe sanctioned this deal with a view to a full takeover in the future and has since invested more cash to raise his share to around 29%.

The Glazer family still owns most of Man Utd, but they have moved to the background as Ratcliffe and his team have taken over the day-to-day running of the club.

This has suited the Glazer family, as Ratcliffe has taken the heat for his controversial decisions over the past couple of years. His popularity has quickly waned as he’s sanctioned a brutal cost-cutting programme, making staff redundant, reducing payments to club legends and hiking ticket prices.

READ: Amorim will sacrifice three academy kids ‘on the cheap’ to Newcastle after Ratcliffe pop

Ratcliffe has also hatched a plan to build a new stadium for Man Utd, but it has recently been claimed that he could be forced out of the club.

This is because the Glazer family hold the option to sell to a higher bidder, and there has been interest from a UAE consortium.

This week, it has been claimed that this group have ‘approached’ Man Utd legends over joining their attempts to buy the club, while the terms of a potential deal have also reportedly been set.

Now, a respected account on X with a ‘team of five elite reporters’ has provided a new update.

They tweeted: ‘According to our sources: A consortium based in the United Arab Emirates 🇦🇪 initial talks has been rejected by @ManUtd.

‘Formal approach made in the last 24 hours. They believe talks can be restarted. David Beckham could be very key to get talks started. UAE are serious.’

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Earlier this week, football finance expert Kieran Maguire explained why there has been a “false flag” amid speculation of a possible takeover.

Maguire claimed: “I think if the Glazers had wanted to sell at $32 per share for the whole club, then they would have done so.

“The fact that nothing has taken place speaks for itself. Yes, the share price has risen and I’ve been monitoring it myself.

“We’re still at $16, $17, and even that includes a speculative element to it.

“So the comments from Turki Al-Sheikh are intriguing, but the club has responded with a fairly heavy ‘no’, and given that it’s listed on the New York Stock Exchange, it’s got to be cautious about what it says publicly.

“So I think it’s a bit of a false flag that we’re seeing. If somebody wanted to get involved in a bid then Twitter’s not the best place to put out that information.

“So you do wonder about the motives of some of the people involved.”