Saudi royal adviser and boxing chief Turki Alalshikh has called for Manchester United’s majority owners, the Glazer family, to follow head coach Ruben Amorim out the door at Old Trafford.
Former Sporting CP manager Amorim was sacked on Monday morning, bringing an end to a turbulent 14-month reign.
His exit appeared to be triggered by a fallout with the club’s hierarchy, after a rant following United’s 1-1 draw with Leeds at the weekend in which he demanded other departments and staff - including the sporting director - do their jobs properly.
Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (GEA) and the organiser of several high-profile boxing fights in Riyadh, has previously declared himself a fan of the club.
He posted on X on Monday morning: “Praise be to God… finally… may the Glazer [family] follow soon”, alongside an image of Amorim emblazoned with the word ‘sacked’.
Manchester United’s majority owners, the American Glazer family, have long come under fire from fans since their takeover 20 years ago, largely over the vast scale of debt the club has accumulated.
The Glazers remain majority shareholders although control of footballing operations passed to minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, owners of chemicals group Ineos, in 2024.
Alalshikh has previous form for weighing in on United’s ownership, sparking debate in October when he said the club was in the process of securing new investment, although there was no indication this was actually happening.
He posted on social media: “The best news I heard today is that Manchester United is now in an advanced stage of completing a deal to sell to a new investor. I hope he's better than the previous owners.”
He later posted a clarification: “Just to clarify, I am not the investor, nor are they from my nation. I'm posting this as a fan who wishes the deal to happen, though it might not necessarily happen.” There were no further reports of any investment deal.
