Sheikh Jassim's camp issues public response to claims Man Utd takeover bid has been successful

Sheikh Jassim's delegation have issued a public response after a report claimed that a bid from his Nine Two Foundation to purchase Manchester United had been successful.

On Monday evening, it was reported that the Qatari businessman's offer to take over 100 per cent of United had been accepted by the club's current owners, the Glazer family.

Following the claim, United's share price spiked by nearly 25 per cent in pre-market trading on Tuesday, although did drop as the day progressed.

However, The Athletic say that the original report appears to trace back to a Twitter account with over 300 followers.

The account, which advertises illegal football streaming, claimed that a deal was done between Sheikh Jassim and the Glazers.

The tweet was then retweeted by the editor of Qatari newspaper Al Watan, and then reported on by the Al Watan account, which has more than 290,000 followers and is verified.

Now, Sheikh Jassim's delegation have responded to the rumour.

Sheikh Jassim camp responds to Man Utd takeover report

As reported by the Press Association (via Daily Mirror), Sheikh Jassim's camp have branded reports that their takeover bid has been successful as 'pure speculation'.

They add that they are still in a 'holding pattern', with PA reporting on Tuesday morning that the delegation has yet to receive a response from the Glazer family over their bid.

The Athletic claim that sources close to the Qatari bid were surprised by the reports.

The Nine Two Foundation submitted a fifth and final offer for United last week, with the intention of withdrawing from further negotiations if a response was not received by Friday.

The fifth offer, however, remains on the table, despite the deadline of Friday having passed. Journalist Ben Jacobs claimed that the bid is worth around $6.5 billion, with $1 billion in investment on top.

Meanwhile, the Daily Mail claimed on Sunday that those acting on behalf of Sheikh Jassim feel they are 'very much in the game'.

His apparent main rival in the takeover process, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, had been in advanced talks with US merchant bank Raine Group - who are overseeing negotiations - for 'a number of weeks', although insiders told the Mail that there has been 'something of a breakthrough with their rivals'.