Paul Scholes has shared the one doubt he has about Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s takeover of Manchester United, which is set to be ratified soon.
The ex-Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has been speaking about the impending Ineos takeover of United which would see Ratcliffe, and his team, acquire 25 per cent of the club.
The much-maligned Glazer family, however, will remain in majority control but will focus on the commercial side of the operations with Ratcliffe and his team focussing on the sport side.
Scholes, speaking on the Webby & O’Neill Show shared his one concern and it is one that will be echoed by the whole of the United fanbase.
Scholes’ concern
“Well, everyone talks about recruitment and recruitment is very difficult. It’s a difficult thing to get right, every signing you make is a risk,” Scholes said.
“It’s clear that we’ve signed good players, but a lot of them don’t seem to ever work. So I think that will be the first thing he does.
“They’re talking about a director of football as well, or a sporting director whatever you want to call it, with some experience, that will be something he will want to get in place straight away. I just find it difficult to believe that he’s going to be left to his own devices, only owning 25 per cent of the football club.
“How are the Glazers not going to want a say at the top table when it comes to football decisions?”
We await to see what the 25 per cent acquisition of United would mean for the future purchasing of shares but you would hope that the 71-year-old will have something in writing that says he will be able to purchase those sooner rather than later.
If not, this truly would be a worrying deal for the fanbase but there is no suggestion of this yet.
Glazers and Ratcliffe
The pairing of the Glazer family and Ratcliffe may well be a marriage of convenience at this moment in time, but it’s hard to imagine a scenario where there aren’t issues down the line.
Despite being in majority control, the American family will, hopefully, take a step back from the day-to-day running of the club, although that may well be an optimistic wish.
Sticking with the positives, this is the first time in 18 years that a team with experience in running sport sides will be making the decisions at Old Trafford, these are exciting times.
The hope will be that this team will be given autonomy at Old Trafford.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
