Yeah, I don't think there will be an announcement on that very soon. The lawyers are looking at it thoroughly, though.
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The 2022-2023 Football Thread
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Cronaldo's position at Man U is now 100% untenable. Man U fan friend of mine just wants to see the back of him, thinks he's been a massivley toxic influence sine the day he returned, and I think most Man U fans think the same. He hasn't contributed much, he's slower, less sharp, and just not what he was 10 years ago. Obviously. Tbh he'd have done himself a favour if he'd retired after Juve, or even Real, leave on a high at the peak of your career. Now, all he's achieved is the most ignominious end possible, and destroyed any relationship he had with Man U, tarnished his legacy, and made himself look like a right wally. It's a humiliating end. I'm sure he has sufficient adoring fans worldwide to keep his God complex topped up, but in Manchester and the UK at least, he'll just be remembered as a knob.
I did like him using Man City to bump up his transfer deal when he re-signed at Utd though. That was a masterstroke. 🤣
I did like him using Man City to bump up his transfer deal when he re-signed at Utd though. That was a masterstroke. 🤣
And now Ronaldo is officially out, per announcement by United.
Don't let the door hit you.
Don't let the door hit you.
Double dose of excellent news today! Now let's rub the magic lamp a third time for a top quality striker to come in to take Ronaldo's spot in the squad.
Yes, I read that story; fascinating, if true, not least in the matter of the timing of this news.
I presume that the Glazers, like FSG, see competing with state clubs as a losing proposition in the long term. The club is currently worth much more than they paid. And regardless what they say, they know they are hated, so getting put now-ish is a win-win for them.
But of course, the major question for fans is, will they become another club owned by a repressive, oil-rich Gulf state?
I think the timing of this proposed sale very interesting.
To my mind, it has a lot less to do with the noise surrounding the acrimonious departure of Ronaldo (that has been inevitable ever since the summer, and his petulance hasn't helped his cause), than a recognition that, firstly, the World Cup allows for a lot of distraction - this decision will probably be subject to less scrutiny and commentary than usual, as the attention of much of the football world will be elsewhere - secondly, from a competitive perspective, the current model of ownership has possibly taken the club as far as it can go, - in other words, I suspect that the Glazers do not see Manchester United (under their ownership) being able to offer a serious challenge for the trophies that really count - and thirdly, now is probably a very good - and profitable - time to cash in on this investment.
Which means - for the future - that some model of state ownership might well indeed be sought by Mnachester United, if only to be in a position to seriously challenge Manchester City for the title of top club in Manchester.
I'm laughing, reading this, but, yes, I agree with you.
First thing he will do is sack all the unsuccessful players. Then he will reinstate the old has been players that used to be big, but now are just BIG! Steve Bruce comes to mind.....
Would an oil rich state be better off buying a sleeping giant?
Take newcastle for instance the money spent is a fraction of what it would cost to buy Man United. Something like £550m so far vs £3.7b. And it’s not like Man United are in a position to win very much.
I’m just pulling figures out of my arse here but I don’t think it’s unrealistic to say you could win big trophies with a £2bn investment over a £4.5bn investment.
If I was a wealthy petro state I would be looking at someone like Everton over Man U if the price was right.
I think you'll find the very same people who have been banging on about how terrible Qatar is, going very silent if Utd were to be bought by such people. Man City, Arsenal and now Newcastle fans are pretty silent on the human rights abuses that happen in the states that own their clubs. Gary Neville seems to happy enough to earn money out of the World Cup. Everyone's a hypocrite when it suits them...
I'm actually curious to see whether the Qatari owners will reduce their spending after the World Cup.
I've always thought the lavish investments in European football clubs were a form of soft power in an effort to bring legitimacy to their World Cup, to appear as the "good guys" that care about football and then, once the World Cup is finished, they would dramatically reduce those investments, or withdraw entirely; those investments, of course, given the lack of financial rules in European football or, more precisely, rules that are either not enforced or very laxly enforced, don't make any sense from a financial standpoint, you just can't make any money with a football club while being competitive at the same time, unless you have a sizable worldwide fanbase and excellent marketing like Real Madrid, or you're very well managed and control the fanbase of the most affluent region of the most affluent European country like Bayern Munich does, while, at the same time, basically having a financial monopoly in your own domestic league.
I mean, are those clubs an expensive toy for them, like Juventus was for Gianni Agnelli, Inter Milan was for the Moratti family, Milan was - not entirely, I believe - for Berlusconi, Parma for Callisto Tanzi, Lazio for Cragnotti, etc? Because, if those clubs are indeed a toy for them, they will keep pouring money into them like there's no tomorrow; but, if owning those clubs needed to serve a purpose for Qatar as a country, then I don't know if it will still make sense to use them as a soft power political vehicle, unless, of course, they, as politicians and statesmen, still have more goals in the field of international politics and the image of their country abroad, like, I'm conjecturing here, gaining from other countries, France and England at the moment, more favorable conditions to invest money in more profitable fields, like "I'm spending all this money on your national sport, now you won't oppose to me buying these assets/companies, or you will do more favorable business with my country, or just don't make too much noise regarding the blatant disrespect of human rights going on in my country, or even don't stick your nose in the foreign politics of Qatar", I don't know, as I said, it's just a conjecture.
I've always thought the lavish investments in European football clubs were a form of soft power in an effort to bring legitimacy to their World Cup, to appear as the "good guys" that care about football and then, once the World Cup is finished, they would dramatically reduce those investments, or withdraw entirely; those investments, of course, given the lack of financial rules in European football or, more precisely, rules that are either not enforced or very laxly enforced, don't make any sense from a financial standpoint, you just can't make any money with a football club while being competitive at the same time, unless you have a sizable worldwide fanbase and excellent marketing like Real Madrid, or you're very well managed and control the fanbase of the most affluent region of the most affluent European country like Bayern Munich does, while, at the same time, basically having a financial monopoly in your own domestic league.
I mean, are those clubs an expensive toy for them, like Juventus was for Gianni Agnelli, Inter Milan was for the Moratti family, Milan was - not entirely, I believe - for Berlusconi, Parma for Callisto Tanzi, Lazio for Cragnotti, etc? Because, if those clubs are indeed a toy for them, they will keep pouring money into them like there's no tomorrow; but, if owning those clubs needed to serve a purpose for Qatar as a country, then I don't know if it will still make sense to use them as a soft power political vehicle, unless, of course, they, as politicians and statesmen, still have more goals in the field of international politics and the image of their country abroad, like, I'm conjecturing here, gaining from other countries, France and England at the moment, more favorable conditions to invest money in more profitable fields, like "I'm spending all this money on your national sport, now you won't oppose to me buying these assets/companies, or you will do more favorable business with my country, or just don't make too much noise regarding the blatant disrespect of human rights going on in my country, or even don't stick your nose in the foreign politics of Qatar", I don't know, as I said, it's just a conjecture.
Rumours are apple are interested in buying United off the glazers
i'm surprised this isn't headline news on this site already
i'm surprised this isn't headline news on this site already
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Yep, if it's true then a big story.
Apple, as future Manchester United owners, to frustrated fans: "You're watching it wrong."
Apple, as future Manchester United owners, to frustrated fans: "You're watching it wrong."
I remember when the Glazers took over, and many Utd fans were rubbing their hands together at the prospect of being able to buy any player they wanted, and winning everything.
Oh.
Man U have spent more (net spend) than any other club in the world, on players, over the last 10 years. The problem isn't spending, the real root of the problem is trying to hold on to past glories, and imagining what things were like under Alex Bacon Face. The fact he still clearly has a lot of influence at the club speaks volumes; his appointment of Moyes as his successor (a manager who'd never won anything, ever) was the abject failure anyone outside of Salford saw coming a mile off. Successive appointments have been failures also, although Moany Maureen did at least win a second tier Euro trophy. The fickle fans have turned on any player that has been less than brilliant (so that's pretty much all of them), and have helped create such a toxic atmosphere at the club it's no wonder they underperform so badly. what Man U have to do, isn't really about the Glazers; they need to reset and start again. Get Bacon Face and the old guard out, and have a bit of a rebrand. Liverpool held on to the old 'Boot Room' mentality for far too long, and it cost them dearly. Their reset proved successful, although they've been extremely poor so far this season. Sometimes you just have to accept one era is over, and a new one must begin. I don't think most Man U fans realise this.
I'd quite like to see Mike Ashley take over Man U.
Oh.
Man U have spent more (net spend) than any other club in the world, on players, over the last 10 years. The problem isn't spending, the real root of the problem is trying to hold on to past glories, and imagining what things were like under Alex Bacon Face. The fact he still clearly has a lot of influence at the club speaks volumes; his appointment of Moyes as his successor (a manager who'd never won anything, ever) was the abject failure anyone outside of Salford saw coming a mile off. Successive appointments have been failures also, although Moany Maureen did at least win a second tier Euro trophy. The fickle fans have turned on any player that has been less than brilliant (so that's pretty much all of them), and have helped create such a toxic atmosphere at the club it's no wonder they underperform so badly. what Man U have to do, isn't really about the Glazers; they need to reset and start again. Get Bacon Face and the old guard out, and have a bit of a rebrand. Liverpool held on to the old 'Boot Room' mentality for far too long, and it cost them dearly. Their reset proved successful, although they've been extremely poor so far this season. Sometimes you just have to accept one era is over, and a new one must begin. I don't think most Man U fans realise this.
I'd quite like to see Mike Ashley take over Man U.
Looks like Saudi Arabia are planning to takeover Utd and 'Pool in one swoop. Along with PSG (Qatar i know) and Newcastle that will be a sizeable chunk of european football in state pockets. Europe has essentially become a playground for the Arab Peninsula. Land, sports, commodities all being gobbled up. The Russians and Americans are being shoved aside with relative ease. And leaders are basically selling themselves and their people to the highest bidder. Not that its anything new but its now pretty much open viewing.
State>Corporations>Individuals.
State>Corporations>Individuals.
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Apple buying Man Utd is bull. It comes from the Star who basically exist for sex stories and big headlines. They have went down the list of the richest people and companies who could afford to buy Man Utd and found the biggest names.
It would against Apple’s MO. and be counter productive. Why would they buy a football club for $5bn-$8bn which would not really bring them much money and cost them quite a bit? Also their biggest outlay was £3bn for Beats.
Not only this but if they bought Man Utd, then it would go against them when the Premier League rights go to auction. There was a big uproar about Emirates sponsoring the FA Cup and Arsenal at the same time.
Also the Saudi link is loose. All it was, was the Sports minister saying in an ideal world Saudi companies would buy Man Utd and Liverpool. That’s not saying they are going too or he has the authority to tell them too.
Radcliffe and the Dubai fund will be the best and most likely buyers.
It would against Apple’s MO. and be counter productive. Why would they buy a football club for $5bn-$8bn which would not really bring them much money and cost them quite a bit? Also their biggest outlay was £3bn for Beats.
Not only this but if they bought Man Utd, then it would go against them when the Premier League rights go to auction. There was a big uproar about Emirates sponsoring the FA Cup and Arsenal at the same time.
Also the Saudi link is loose. All it was, was the Sports minister saying in an ideal world Saudi companies would buy Man Utd and Liverpool. That’s not saying they are going too or he has the authority to tell them too.
Radcliffe and the Dubai fund will be the best and most likely buyers.
Why should newcastle fans (I am one) be the ones to shout up about this? We didn’t create a football system that essentially demanded state ownership to be successful.
We kicked up a fuss when we had a bad owner with a questionable rights record, He had Burmese and Laos sweatshops. Nobody gave a **** and we were regarded as a joke.
I gave years of my life and friends gave a lot more to try and give some people rights in the Middle East’ish region and the left of politics just wanted to stop it. Now we’ve got gays being flogged in football stadiums again and women being stoned. I’ve done my bit as a newcastle fan to try and improve the world and got no thanks for it.
If the vast majority people in Saudi Arabia want to live by Wahhabism then who am I to say that’s wrong? (I don’t think it’s right if you’re going to claim I do)
If the crown prince sanctions the move i'm not really sure Radcliff or Dubai would be able to oppose but we'll see.
The Saudi Crown Prince? You can’t own two clubs so PIF shouldn’t be allowed and they PL convinced itself that PIF wasn’t the state so the crown prince himself cant actually buy it.