Googles âsad Phil Jonesâ
A hard man to replace
A savage loss of experience there
His younger brother was even better
I can never understand why Tuanzebe didnt get more of a run. He must have a terrible attitude.
Injuries
Ah when he was fit he didnât get a look in either in fairness.
Ah Jesus and I was full of optimism today looking forward to the upcoming sport.
Valuation of share price being lower is a but odd. âI want to pay 100%, but itâs a lower 100%.â
These fellas must have come up with the 100% Redress scheme for Mica.
Maybe theyâve paid for the full survey?
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Manchester United sale: Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Sheikh Jassim and what weâre hearing
Laurie Whitwell and more
May 17, 2023
It is 176 days into the Glazer familyâs proposed, protracted sale of Manchester United and there might finally be light at the end of the tunnel.
As ever in a process that has meandered in various directions, with plenty of contradictory claims along the way, scepticism is a useful companion. But several sources close to the deal, who like others in this article will remain anonymous to protect business relationships, are now reporting confidence from Sir Jim Ratcliffeâs team that his INEOS bid will be successful.
Notably, in a new development, bankers associated with past acquisitions by petrochemicals giant INEOS were very recently instructed to pull together specific financing for the United deal, indicating an advanced stage of talks.
At Unitedâs training ground and Old Trafford, staff have been asked to dig out facts and figures that would be used for due diligence.
Sir Dave Brailsford, the former British Cycling chief who is a crucial figure in Ratcliffeâs team, has let his optimism be known.
The INEOS mindset is one thing; the crucial element, however, is what the Glazers decide to do. And, on Tuesday evening came another twist in the tale. Those representing Sheikh Jassimâs Qatar bid claimed an improved offer had gone in for the whole club.
Given neither Ratcliffe nor Sheikh Jassim, the two parties interested in gaining control of United, had heard back officially over their third bids, lodged on April 28, the reason for the offer tabled on Tuesday (as purported by Sheikh Jassimâs representatives) could lie in back-channel dialogue and the Qataris fearing they were going to miss out without making one final attempt. What happens now remains to be seen, but the end-game is at least in sight.
The sense things had up to that point been heading in the direction of the 70-year-old from Failsworth, some four miles north east of Manchester city centre, comes from financiers who have spoken recently to counterparts at Raine and is strengthened by a mystique around Sheikh Jassim. Some at Raine, the merchant bank handling the search for âstrategic alternativesâ, are surprised there has been no direct contact with the man central to the Qatari proposal, even at this late stage in proceedings.
Representatives for Sheikh Jassim say he is not someone who wants to be in the public eye â the handful of photographs available online are evidence of this â and it would have felt presumptuous to make himself visible.
But this is now a crunch point in what could be a once-in-a-generation opportunity to own United and the lack of dialogue with Sheikh Jassim is regarded as notable by those involved.
Ratcliffe attended the tour of Old Trafford and Carrington in person alongside Brailsford. Sheikh Jassim instead sent a group including Shahzad Shahbaz, president of the Nine Two Foundation, which would be the vehicle for his takeover, and Fady Bakhos, the most senior personal adviser to the Qatari royal.
But some believe that level of privacy means the Premier League would take longer in ratifying a Qatari takeover, making the deal less appealing to the Glazer siblings who want to cash out immediately. The clubâs co-chairmen, Avram and Joel Glazer, are known to be the most reluctant to sell up, while Bryan, Edward and Kevin Glazer, as well as their sister, Darcie Glazer Kassewitz, are eager to bank their shares. On this theme, interrogation of biddersâ ultimate source of wealth has already been part of the process.
Perhaps less importantly but nevertheless intriguingly, there has been a distinct lack of harmony in conversations involving Raine and Sheikh Jassimâs camp.
From the outset, sources connected to Qatar expressed doubts about whether the Glazers actually wanted a full sale and there has since been accusations of inaccurate briefings by both sides. âPointing fingers,â as one person involved described the situation.
For the second round of bids, on March 23, there are different versions of what happened around the extended deadline.
Those speaking on behalf of Sheikh Jassim initially claimed a revised offer had been made, but then said this was withdrawn after Raine communicated a request by Ratcliffeâs team for more time. Staff at Raine say the Qataris told them two days before that they wouldnât hit the deadline, which was accepted, and INEOS only asked for a 12-hour extension a day later. Raine say they did not inform Sheikh Jassimâs camp of this.
This kind of tit-for-tat has extended to claims around the size of Sheikh Jassimâs third bid. There is a dispute on whether it was more or less than ÂŁ5billion.
According to Qatari representatives, all their bids, as well as the one they claimed had been made on Tuesday, have included wiping Unitedâs debt, which at a minimum is ÂŁ535.7m â the amount placed on the club by the Glazers in their 2005 leveraged takeover. That would be money that does not go to any of the siblings, which is a factor to consider. Sheikh Jassimâs camp also say there is a commitment of several hundred million pounds for investment in the stadium and local community on top of the bid amount.
Squabbles behind the scenes would not usually be of significance, but given this late stage, the tone has suggested there needed to be a drastic change for an agreement to follow. One source also claimed the friction had prompted those in Sheikh Jassimâs circle to go direct to the Glazers at least once. Perhaps this fresh bid is the result of that.
Conversely, the noises around Ratcliffeâs bid have been positive, which is a turnaround given the initial doubt in some quarters about his approach and scope of funding. Raine and Ratcliffe also had what people call a âchequered historyâ after his late entrance into the Chelsea bidding.
Ratcliffe tabled a last-minute offer to buy Chelsea last May â despite Raine, the bank charged with facilitating the Chelsea sale, having already established a shortlist of four consortiums.
The crucial point with United, however, appears to have been the third bids. Any anticipated raise from Sheikh Jassim did not materialise, while reports surfaced of Ratcliffe proposing a deal that would see him gain a majority of slightly more than 50 per cent and allow Joel and Avram to stay on as minority shareholders. The Glazers currently own roughly 69 per cent of Manchester United, with about 31 per cent of shares held by non-family members, the vast majority of them by institutional investors.
Ratcliffeâs representatives are remaining tight-lipped on his bid, but rebuttals on this aspect could be expected given how toxic an association with the Glazers would be.
That Ratcliffeâs proposal values United shares at a higher price than the Qatari bid, even now, has not been disputed by anybody. He has greater flexibility to pay more per share because he is not planning to straightaway buy 100 per cent of club stock, nor pay off the debt. His commitment would be about 51 per cent of the overall club value, which, at ÂŁ6bn, would be ÂŁ3.06bn â in the same ballpark as the ÂŁ2.5bn bid he made for Chelsea, which had an additional promise of ÂŁ1.75bn investment into the club over the following 10 years. In that scenario, there is a big difference in immediate outlay between the parties.
One reading, expressed by several observers, is that Ratcliffe would buy out the four siblings most wishing to sell â Bryan, Kevin, Edward, Darcie â at a price above market value (a ÂŁ5bn bid equates to $32.5 per share; current market price is $18.85). This would let Joel and Avram stay at a 20 per cent level to accede their desire to keep some hold on the club and also so the takeover does not cost Ratcliffe or INEOS as much money immediately.
The Glazers would have to strike an agreement that their Class B shares do not convert to Class A shares in order for Ratcliffe to actually have control. Class B shares are worth 10 times the voting rights of Class A shares and automatic conversion is written into the stock offering at present.
Sky News have reported Ratcliffeâs bid includes put-and-call options, which would make sense as an exit route for Joel and Avram.
An investor with shares in United explains: âA put option probably means Joel and Avram can force INEOS to buy their shares at a minimum price at some point in the future, for instance $30 per share, which protects them from losing money from here. The call option for INEOS probably means they can buy the Glazer shares at a higher price, $45 per share for example, anytime before a certain date, say 2026. This is a way for Joel and Avram to protect their downside while having a viable path to get out.â
That would guard against the situation Alisher Usmanov found himself in at Arsenal when he had 30 per cent of the club in 2011 but no influence because Stan Kroenke owned more than 60 per cent. Usmanov eventually sold to Kroenke in 2018.
Holding 20 per cent without put-and-call agreements could leave Joel and Avram holding stock of less value, even if they might still be curiously enticed by the simple prestige of having a stake in United. Avram attended the womenâs FA Cup final defeat by Chelsea having also been at Wembley for the menâs sideâs Carabao Cup final win against Newcastle United in February.
The risk otherwise is explained by the investor. âI canât see Qatar or another state buying only 20 per cent,â they say. âPrivate equity wonât be interested in shares with no financial return, so this would give Joel and Avram an exit route at a higher price than the market value.â
Trying to sell on the open market would see the shares almost half in value. The general trend of the stock is downwards since news emerged Ratcliffeâs bid had serious momentum because he intends to leave the 31 per cent the Glazers donât own on the market for the time being. The share price has been below $20 for a fortnight, significantly below the all-time of $27 in February, suggesting investors have gradually been losing faith in their prospect of ever receiving a souped-up offer for their shares.
The proposed Ratcliffe arrangement has led to financiers pointing out how little upside there has been for anyone buying United shares since the IPO launch of 2012. There is some anger at a deal that would cut them out.
Others in the industry have scoffed that only one full bidder has been brought to the table, removing any competitive tension.
Several sources have been taken aback by the length of time this process has taken. Elliottâs acquisition of AC Milan, by contrast, took a matter of weeks. Elliott, Ares, Carlyle, and Sixth Street have offered minority investments in United.
Invested observers speculate all the weeks and months point to disagreements among the six siblings, with Joel and Avram also changing their minds, which is why until the paperwork is signed, there will be doubt about the final conclusion. Some feel giving Ratcliffe the impression of success could be a final method to squeeze the Qataris.
Those involved in Sheikh Jassimâs bid say they are not giving up, as this latest apparent bid demonstrates. Whether it is the final one depends, according to sources, on what feedback they receive. The fact he has not blown Ratcliffe out of the water adds weight to claims it is a private enterprise rather than a state-sanctioned move. People who work with Qatar accept something of this magnitude would require tacit acceptance from the ruling family, but argue there is not a blank cheque to write.
Sheikh Jassimâs father, Sheikh Hamad, the former prime minister of Qatar, described any football bid as an âinvestmentâ not âadvertisementâ.
So, as one source with an understanding of the Qatari viewpoint put it, bending to âGlazer greedinessâ is not on the agenda.
Additional contributors: Dan Sheldon, Matt Slater & James Horncastle
Another decent genuine fella Blackguarded by united and the fans
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All he wanted to do was play and be loved, they ruined his life
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He wanted to play in sepia.
united drained the colour from his life
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Pity the way it worked out for Jones.
Injuries are a cunt. Hopefully he finds a career somewhere else in the game now.
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