Britain's richest man Sir Jim Ratcliffe will launch a bid to takeover Manchester United after the Glazer family put the Premier League club up for sale.
Ratcliffe previously attempted to buy the club over the summer, but ultimately pulled out after it became clear the Glazers were not willing to sell. He is the owner of petrochemicals giant Ineos and is considered to be one of the richest men in the world.
The Glazers though have now U-turned on their stance and announced on Tuesday evening that they would consider offers for the Old Trafford side. That has led to Ratcliffe re-entering the playing field, having also tried to buy Chelsea last season.
The Daily Telegraph report Ratcliffe will now launch a fresh bid to buy the Red Devils, but is said to be wary of the £5billion asking price that has been slapped on the club. United are using The Raine Group to help find new investment, a company Ratcliffe has experience dealing with after they also advised Chelsea on their sale.
Ratcliffe is said to be concerned they may look for a price that is 'far beyond' United's actual value, with his failed bid for Chelsea coming late as he wanted for that price to drop. The Blues were ultimately sold for around £2.5bn to American billionaire Todd Boehly.
The Ineos owner has a particular interest in United having supported them since he was a child and he was also present at the legendary 1999 Champions League final. His interest in the Red Devils is said to be 'serious' and he is the first major suitor to have a bid declared.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Are you happy the Glazers are selling Manchester United? Comment below.
Ratcliffe's Ineos group already owns Ligue 1 side Nice, as well as holding interests in professional cycling and Formula One. Taking over United would not necessarily mean that he has to give up his ownership of Nice, though UEFA rules state the two clubs would not be allowed to play each other competitively.
United's share price increased again on Wednesday and it is though that some of the parties who mounted unsuccessful bids for Chelsea could make a move for the Red Devils. Back in October, Ratcliffe gave an insight into how he would run United differently to the Glazer family.
“Might I run it differently? Or might I run it? I think the answer about performance of Manchester United is a simple one. The biggest correlation of success in football is money. Without question," Ratcliffe told a Financial Times event.
"It’s not the only one because you have outliers like Brighton. But the biggest one by far is – if you’ve got the highest revenues you can afford the best players, you play the best football. Manchester United is one of those. It was one of those top three clubs.
"The two in Spain, Madrid and Barca, then Manchester United. They all earned revenues of about £800m. A few more have joined that club now, of course. You’ve got Bayern Munich, you’ve got PSG. You’ve got, I can hardly say it, Manchester City. And Liverpool.
"But Manchester United are not playing in that league of those other teams, at the moment. And they haven’t done really since Sir Alex stepped down. So something is not… they are not firing on all cylinders. That would be my point on performance.”
