Turki Alalshikh Breaks Silence on Man Utd Takeover Comments With New Post

Saudi sports chief Turki Alalshikh has clarified comments he made surrounding a potential takeover of Manchester United on Wednesday night.

Alalshikh claimed he had heard that United were 'in an advanced stage of completing a deal to sell to a new investor', adding: "I hope he's better than the previous owners."

He did not elaborate further nor give any further details as to the reported investor, leaving fans confused.

BBC Sport reported on Thursday that, according to 'multiple sources' from United, the comments made by Alalshikh were not true.

Now, the chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority has released a new statement through his official account.

He wrote: "My yesterday's post about Manchester United's potential sale meant one thing: the club is in an advanced negotiation phase with a new investor.

"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."

The club's current owners, the Glazer family, sold a 25 per cent majority stake in United to Sir Jim Ratcliffe in December 2023.

According to reports, the Glazers can invoke a 'drag-along' clause to effectively force Ratcliffe to sell his shareholding, which stands at around 50 million shares, by offering him £26 per share.

Ratcliffe and his petrochemicals company INEOS have taken a lead role on footballing operations since they arrived at the club.

The club's Carrington training facility was redeveloped earlier this year using £50 million of the £300m figure that Ratcliffe promised to invest in infrastructure as part of his ownership agreement, while proposals have been unveiled for significant renovation work to Old Trafford.

However, the British billionaire has been criticised for significant job cuts at the club, as well as his decision to hire and then sack Dan Ashworth as sporting director in the space of five months.

United's financial records showed that the decision cost them £4.1 million, totalling the compensation payout to his previous club Newcastle and the payoff for subsequently terminating his contract at Old Trafford.

He also sanctioned a new contract for Erik ten Hag in the summer of 2024 after United won the FA Cup, only to sack him in October of that year. The Dutchman and his staff were given a combined payout of £10.4 million.