Five things Ratcliffe must do at Man Utd to get fans back on side from fixing Old Trafford to superstar splash signing
ONE OF Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s first tasks at Manchester United must be to get the fed-up fans back on side.
We reported earlier how security planning is being beefed up ahead of their next home game amid the news that the Glazer family are staying.
That was after Sheikh Jassim pulled OUT of the race to own United after accusing the Glazers of demanding an “outlandish” price to sell the club.
Nine months of detailed negotiations ended on Saturday when the Qatari withdrew his £5bn bid and told the Glazers he is no longer interested.
Now Sir Jim, who is believed to be proposing to purchase just a 25 per cent share of the Red Devils, is the option left on the table.
A meeting of the Old Trafford board on Thursday will decide whether to accept Ratcliffe’s offer and his demand for “sporting control”.
But what could change at a Ratcliffe-owned United?
Sun Sport looks at five things that would help make Britain’s richest man Sunny Jim as far as the fans are concerned:
PROVE IT’S A FRESH START
The supporters, many of whom will be devastated at the news that the Glazers will retain – for now at least – 75 per cent of the club, will be looking for true signs of change.
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Some of that will be cosmetic, perhaps, and a fresh lick of paint around some parts of Old Trafford would be good to see. But it means Ratcliffe might ask the Glazers to consider staying away from the club.
More crucially, Ratcliffe must demonstrate he IS in charge of the sporting side of things by kicking out some of the old guard.
It is understood that many staff at the club are worried about their futures but it is not the “little guys” who should be targeted.
Whether the Glazers will simply accede to any boardroom change requests is less clear – and could yet prove a huge stumbling block in the imminent negotiations.
MAKE A STATEMENT IN JANUARY
Nobody could say the current United board denied Erik ten Hag the funds he wanted in the summer.
United spent around £180m to bring in Rasmus Hojlund, Mason Mount, Andre Onana, Sofyan Amrabat and others.
But results so far would suggest the team has actually gone backwards since last season and they face a looming must-win Champions League tie with Copenhagen to have a realistic chance of making the knock-out stages.
What would really make a difference is making it clear there will be a genuine superstar signing in the January market – whatever the cost.
It might not make economic sense. But it would make football sense. The fans need to see things are moving in the right direction.
Sheikh Jassim had his sights set on bringing Kylian Mbappe to United and a big-money arrival of that calibre would definitely give disgruntled fans something to smile about.
NO DEBT PLEASE, WE’RE BRITISH
One of the biggest frustrations for the fans has been seeing the Glazers, who bought the club for £790m in 2005, continue to pile on debt and earn millions in shareholder dividends.
The latest quarterly figures show United’s debt now stands at more than £1bn.
Sheikh Jassim had promised to end that situation completely but Ineos are only minority shareholders, for now, with the Glazers retaining a majority.
If the Americans remain in charge of the “business” side of the club, increasing debt and taking more out of the club in payments, the fans will feel nothing has changed.
A CONCRETE PLAN FOR OLD TRAFFORD
Sheikh Jassim pledged £1.4bn for investment in the team, rebuilding Old Trafford and the Carrington training ground and community projects. But he is no longer in the running.
The brutal truth is that England’s biggest club ground is tired, antiquated and basically not fit for purpose. It is certainly not a suitable home for the country’s biggest club.
Ratcliffe and his team have let it be known they envisage expanding the capacity to 90,000 but that is no more than a pipe dream unless genuine and costed architectural plans are unveiled, with a detailed timescale.
If that means building on the adjacent land currently used as a car park, so there is a seamless transition, then fine. But it needs to be quick.
MAKE THE NEXT INVESTMENT STEPS
Ineos and Sir Jim have made it clear that they see the initial deal with the Glazers as the bridgehead to eventually take a majority stake.
But that will mean spending at least another £1.4bn to get to the 50 per cent plus one threshold – and it is likely the asking price will be higher as, once they are in a minority, the Glazers will have nothing to bargain with.
Fans want to see that Sir Jim is truly serious about ending the Glazer reign and that means concrete acquisitions of shares.
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