What Manchester United insider said about Sheikh Jassim plan to invest extra £1.3bn

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There were major developments in the Manchester United takeover saga at the weekend.

In case you missed it, Qatari investor Sheikh Jassim withdrew from the bidding for Manchester United at the weekend.

The Times reports this came after final talks last week between The Raine Group and Nine Two Foundation director Shahzad Shahbaz, with a price unable to be agreed.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe is now set to win the race, for an initial 25 per cent stake, with a view to a bigger takeover later, The Mail report.

Extra funding did not tempt the Glazers

Manchester United fans were split on the potentially different ownership groups, however, there were a lot of fans who did want Sheikh Jassim to win the race.

Part of the reason was his plan to buy 100 per cent of the club, eradicating the Glazers from the club completely.

Seemingly, this was not a step they were prepared to take, not for the money he was offering.

Jassim had pledged to invest money in the surrounding area, with Fabrizio Romano reporting: “Sheikh Jassim had committed an additional initial amount of over $1.5 billion for Manchester United [not the sellers].

“It was ready to finance new stadium plans, new training centre facilities, buy players, city/community regeneration projects.”

This sounds great. To fans. But we noted earlier this year how this was unlikely to actually appeal to the Glazers, or the Raine Group. And so it proved.

United insider reacts

The Times reports how Sheikh Jassim’s promise to invest extra money did not impress those who decided the takeover process.

The report stated: “In the Qatari proposal there was commitment to further investment once the sale had been completed, but that was quickly dismissed as irrelevant.

“As one insider said, “it was a bit like telling a homeowner you intend to install a new kitchen once you’ve bought their house”. Ultimately, the money would not be lining the pockets of the Glazers.”

This was a bit of a strategic error from the Qataris. If they had put this extra £1.3 billion on top of their £5 billion bid for the club – they would have been successful.

Some fans are right to ask, how badly did they really want it?