Glazers turn down £1.5b bid from Middle Eastern investment group
Thu 6th May 2010 | Clubs Ownership
The Glazer family intend to resist any attempt by the “Red Knights” to buy Manchester United this summer, having rejected a £1.5 billion offer for the club from a Middle Eastern investment group according to the Times newspaper.
It’s reported that a member of the Old Trafford hierarchy disclosed details yesterday of a number of bids that the Glazers have received for United over the past 18 months — the largest of which was for £1.5 billion last year — and stated that the family will not countenance the idea of selling to the self-styled Red Knights, the group of powerful businessmen and wealthy investors who have formed an alliance with a view to buying the club.
The timing of the disclosure will inevitably attract scepticism among the Red Knights and United fans, who will believe that the Glazers have leaked the information to strengthen their negotiating position before they receive an opening offer in the region of £1 billion in the coming weeks.
United, though, maintain that their maligned American owners are long-term investors who will not be persuaded to sell at any price, as shown by their desire to reject the £1.5 billion offer from the Middle East. Although a Chinese consortium was known to be planning a bid last December, no Middle Eastern interest had been made public. United have, however, developed strong links in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, having visited both countries for mid-season training camps over the past 18 months.
The Glazers are determined to send out a defiant message over their plans for the club and to disprove the notion that they would be willing sellers.
There is great concern among United’s fanbase about the club’s debts, which stood at £716.5 million at the most recent count, and at the damaging payment in kind loans that could total £588 million by the time they are due to be repaid in 2017.
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