Glazers' Man Utd price tag laughed off as club's financial mess laid bare

The Glazers' Manchester United price-tag was laughed off by a football finance expert.

The Old Trafford side's American owners announced they were exploring “strategic alternatives” for the club back in November.

Since British petrochemicals billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim have placed revised bids to buy the Premier League giants.

The Glazers are reportedly seeking £6billion if they are to part ways with United, which would be a world record figure for the sports team.

United allegedly want more than the £4.2billion paid to purchase Chelsea last year, given the Manchester club’s global stature.

However, football finance expert Kieran Maguire cited the club’s second-quarter figures as evidence that the Glazer’s asking price is too high.

​​Indeed, United reported a profit of just £6.3million while they carry a debt of £741million.

Glazers asking price is too high

Speaking to the Mail Online, Maguire skewered the Glazer family’s asking price by pointing to the Old Trafford club financial chaos.

Maguire, who is the author of The Price of Football, said: "When you look at the cash generated by the business it is nowhere near £6billion.

“Last August, the market valued United at around £2billion. Potentially it is now worth double, but any more and you really should be crossing your fingers.

“Coming up with a valuation is more art than science.

"You look at how much cash the business is likely to make in the next 10 years and then you add a couple of magic numbers.

“I did that with United and, being generous with the predictions, came up with £2.8bn. The only way it would be worth nearly £6bn would be if you could take control of broadcast rights and sell them yourself.

“As we saw with Project Big Picture that is not going to happen, so the numbers simply don't stack up."

United’s current debt, which Sheikh Jassim is willing to pay off should his takeover attempts be successful, could get worse if the club endure another season without Champions League football.

Topics: Football, Manchester United, Erik Ten Hag, Premier League

Chris Byfield

Sport journalist with experience writing on football, rugby, boxing and the Olympics. I'm also a Crystal Palace fan. Please don't hold this against me.