Sheikh Jassim's 'dream' Manchester United signing will divide fans
The Qatari is one of the frontrunners to take over United in the coming months
Featured Image Credit: Alamy
Topics: Manchester United, Premier League, Neymar
Tom Fenton
Topics: Manchester United, Premier League, Neymar
While the Manchester United ownership situation is far from resolved just yet, it appears that one of the main contenders to buy the club, Sheikh Jassim, knows exactly who he'd sign if his bid is successful.
The Chairman of a leading Qatari bank is thought to be leading the bids alongside Ineos chief - and rumoured United fan - Sir Jim Ratcliffe. Reports suggest that the Glazer family find Ratcliffe's proposal to be more attractive, but it must be noted that Jassim is still very much in the running.
As such, The Sun reports that Jassim has already drawn up a wishlist of players he'd like to sign if he does become United's new owner - with Neymar at the very top.
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The Brazilian international's future is currently up in the air, with PSG potentially willing to sanction his sale this summer.
At the age of 31, Neymar won't be sold for anything close to the £200 million that the Parisians paid for him, although the overall package - including wages - would be a sizable outlay for United.
Recent injury struggles aside, its been a promising campaign for the forward, who has contributed with 18 goals and 17 assists so far.
Having undergone surgery back in February, Neymar will indeed miss the last few weeks of the club season, meaning he may have already played his last game at Parc des Princes.
Jassim making Neymar his top summer signing would potentially put him at odds with Red Devils coach Erik ten Hag, who has emphasized the importance of the club signing a striker.
In recent months, the likes Wout Weghorst, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford have all been tried in the position, to varying degrees of success.
"It’s not a secret that over the whole season, we had a shortage of No.9s," Ten Hag recently explained.
"First, we had the dropout of Ronaldo, then Anthony Martial was often not available, Jadon Sancho was often not available, then you have a shortage of frontline players.
"With less players we have to cover many games, so definitely we need in the frontline players who strengthen the squad.
"You can approach that from many ways. The typical No.9, Rashford can also play very good as a No.9 and Anthony Martial is a great No.9.
"We have players who can play in that role but definitely we need some offensive players who are really impact players, quality players, who improve the frontline."
The manager's comments have led many fans to speculate that Harry Kane could now become the club's top target, especially if the England captain requests a move away from Spurs this summer.
Its set to be a fascinating few months at Old Trafford, with personnel changes almost certain at both boardroom and pitch level.