Zinedine Zidane to Man Utd has Never Looked More Likely with Saudi Takeover
A Saudi Arabian takeover could be transformative for Manchester United with speculation mounting over a potential move for Zinedine Zidane.
On Wednesday evening, Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority, took to social media to suggest that United were set to be sold.
On X, he wrote: The best news I heard today is that Manchester United is now in an advanced stage of completing a deal to sell to a new investor.
"I hope he’s better than the previous owners."
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The update came shortly after Sir Jim Ratcliffe had spoken to The Times, in which he gave no indication that he planned to sell his stake in the club.
Last year, Ratcliffe completed a £1.25 billion deal to own 27.7% of Manchester United, while taking control of football operations from the hugely unpopular Glazer family.
Although there had been interest from Qatar's Sheikh Jassim, that interest never materialised.
Now, following Alalshikh's update on social media, fans are speculating whether United could be set to receive major financial backing from Saudi Arabia
Chris Blackhurst, author of The World's Biggest Cash Machine, a book about the Glazers, discussed the potential impact of Middle Eastern investment on Manchester United while speaking to Sky Sports News.
He said: "I think the debt would have gone, they would have had money.
"I think it would look more like a club that's structured a bit like PSG or City. Their money would have come in."
Blackhurst added that such an investment would likely have led Manchester United to bring in a more high-profile name than Ruben Amorim, such as Zidane.
If Saudi Arabia's interest does materialise, then Zidane will be one of the favourites to get the job.
Earlier this year, Alalshikh met with the former Real Madrid boss to discuss potential projects.
During the meeting, Zidane gifted Alalshikh with a Real Madrid shirt with 'Zidane' on the back, and he also signed Alalshikh's Almeria shirt. The Spanish club were purchased earlier this year by a Saudi investment consortium.
United fans will now be wondering what impact Saudi investment could have on Manchester. Blackhurst continued to emphasise the potential impact that Qatari ownership could have had on Manchester United's managerial position.
"I have no doubt as well that they would have got a superstar manager," he added.
"Look we can speculate, but somebody like Zidane, or that sort of name, who is electric around the world.
"Ruben Amorim, great guy, nice guy, all that stuff, but he's not Zidane, he's not this stellar name. I think they'd have put the money in and got the stellar names."
Topics: Football, Man Utd, Saudi Arabia, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Zinedine Zidane
James Taylor