Club Sale | It’s done!

[The Irish Connection]

Of course it’s daft.

In the first 3 years City managed 10th, 5th, 3rd, spending eye watering sums of money that the club couldn’t afford.

In the first 3 years owning Liverpool FSG managed 6th, 8th, 7th.

Let’s not even start on Arsenal’s ownership.

What represents a good owner for you? What did you expect from little fecking Nice in 3 years?

The clubs above, who hardly had a hair raising first 3 years, were at the time of their takeovers all amongst the top 4 average attendances in the country (yes even Citeh). They were, legitimately big clubs, Nice have the 10th highest attendance in ligue 1 ffs.

If you think Nice trying to attract players to compete with Messi, Neymar, Mbappe and spunk hundreds of millions would’ve been “good ownership”, I couldn’t disagree more, there’s as much chance with that approach they’d be doing an Everton. Nice need to copy Arsenal or Liverpool’s approach, spend money the club can afford, keep a sensible wage structure and build slowly and sustainably.
Nice kept the DoF and structure for a couple of years, then tried something else when it wasn’t working and have now hired a top new DoF. That for me is sensible club ownership, and a sensible debt free United owner would have incredible sums of money to spend and a totally different proposition by taking over the biggest club in the country.

Well said.
All we need is someone to remove the debt and dividends and we’ll be more than competitive.
If they upgrade the stadium and inject an extra bit into transfer funds it’s a bonus.
if the glazers did that I’d probably support them.

and I like the fact Ratcliffe is a fan and grew up in Manchester, he will have care for the area.

 

[cyberman]

or they could invest their 6billion in real stuff and make some actual return? what would any billionaire (who by all accounts are ruthless ultra-capitalists) do?

Who says they won’t?
I remember when Hicks and Gillette were forced to sell Liverpool little over a decade ago because a bank wanted to recall their 200m debt. That type of financing looks like pennies now.
Value keeps rising in football. We always think this is the peak

 

[devilish]

Of course it’s daft.

In the first 3 years City managed 10th, 5th, 3rd, spending eye watering sums of money that the club couldn’t afford.

In the first 3 years owning Liverpool FSG managed 6th, 8th, 7th.

Let’s not even start on Arsenal’s ownership.

What represents a good owner for you? What did you expect from little fecking Nice in 3 years?

The clubs above, who hardly had a hair raising first 3 years, were at the time of their takeovers all amongst the top 4 average attendances in the country (yes even Citeh). They were, legitimately big clubs, Nice have the 10th highest attendance in ligue 1 ffs.

If you think Nice trying to attract players to compete with Messi, Neymar, Mbappe and spunk hundreds of millions would’ve been “good ownership”, I couldn’t disagree more, there’s as much chance with that approach they’d be doing an Everton. Nice need to copy Arsenal or Liverpool’s approach, spend money the club can afford, keep a sensible wage structure and build slowly and sustainably.
Nice kept the DoF and structure for a couple of years, then tried something else when it wasn’t working and have now hired a top new DoF. That for me is sensible club ownership, and a sensible debt free United owner would have incredible sums of money to spend and a totally different proposition by taking over the biggest club in the country.

INEOS has owned football clubs since 2017 when he bought FC Lausanne Sport. So by the time they bought NICE they had some football experience. Now no one believed that INEOS could go toe to toe against PSG. What many seem to have believed that they would make some real progression something that they did not. INEOS had done some terrible mistakes btw like appointing Bob Ratcliffe as head of football and bringing in loads of shit players who hasn't been performing for quite some time and were looking for the last pay cheque like Ramsay and Barkley.

 

[TheReligion]

You seem fixated on Ramsey and Ross Barkley @devilish

 

[devilish]

You seem fixated on Ramsey and Ross Barkley @devilish

Well they are some of the big mistakes INEOS has done which are magnified considering that they are probably eating up a big chunk of Nice's budget. Its basically like mentioning Sanchez when he was at United or Maguire

TBF I am an anti Ratcliffe lite. On one hand I see a naïve owner (football wise) who is at the wrong side of his life (he's 70), he had done many mistakes and is obsessed with value (Manchester United need too much investment to provide that). On the other hand I see a fantastic business man who seem passionate about sports and is learning from his mistakes.

 

[RedBanker]

Who are the interested parties other than Ineos?

 

[Woziak]

There is the £1.4 billion (players & infrastructure) commitment too.

So with this in mind a fair price for united is maybe £4.5bn + £1.5bn club and transfers infrastructure commitment

 

[Regulus Arcturus Black]

So, your premise is, you're only a good owner if you fall lucky with a good manager?

quite the opposite, my examples were to show that even shit owners can look like good ones in the right circumstances. And if you’d asked if FSG were good owners after three years at Liverpool, I’m pretty sure to a man everyone said feck no, yet just a few years later and everyone was hailing them as great owners.
Three years is simply no time at all to declare whether or not an owner is good or bad. Unless of course, they Saddle the club with masses of debt.
I also still believe that Arsenal have a shit owner, just as so many did until this season. But who knows? Hey maybe he’s turned out to be brilliant? It’s certainly daft to claim anything about the Nice ownership, yet, one way or the other.

 

[Gurtej]

or they could invest their 6billion in real stuff and make some actual return? what would any billionaire (who by all accounts are ruthless ultra-capitalists) do?

what do you mean a real stuff? Our club is a real stuff and a very attractive investment for a long term view….

Who Knew glazers before they bought man utd (I am talking about world wide presence), even who knew Roman A before he bought Chelsea….

owning a club like ours is a privilege that very few will have…

I give you a practical example of one variable….I am currently in South Africa, I went to a place called Nysna and was doing a boat tour in the lagoon….The guide showed us a house on one side of the water (it was only one) and asked if we can guess how much it is sold for…

No one got it right and than the guide told us the $ value and all were left stunned…Someone asked why this expensive….. the guide said one of the reason is that the Govt has restricted construction on this side of the water so it will always be a unique property…

Again, scale is completely different but don’t see buying price only from traditional valuation method as it will make no sense …

 

[Amir]

His previous and current engagements at football clubs is the only way to judge him at the moment so I've no idea how that is daft. To expect him to be the owner everyone dreams of when everything he is doing at other clubs points to a different direction is what I'd call naive.

And yet, the likely alternatives are people who we cannot judge at all when it comes to football ownership because they never owned a club...

Someone who cut his teeth elsewhere may not be such a bad thing.

 

[Superden]

what do you mean a real stuff? Our club is a real stuff and a very attractive investment for a long term view….

Who Knew glazers before they bought man utd (I am talking about world wide presence), even who knew Roman A before he bought Chelsea….

owning a club like ours is a privilege that very few will have…

I give you a practical example of one variable….I am currently in South Africa, I went to a place called Nysna and was doing a boat tour in the lagoon….The guide showed us a house on one side of the water (it was only one) and asked if we can guess how much it is sold for…

No one got it right and than the guide told us the $ value and all were left stunned…Someone asked why this expensive….. the guide said one of the reason is that the Govt has restricted construction on this side of the water so it will always be a unique property…

Again, scale is completely different but don’t see buying price only from traditional valuation method as it will make no sense …

my comment was in reference to someone asking for a buyer to come in, clear the debt, buy some players and update the stadium / infrastructure whilst not taking dividends etc.
I doubt anyone minded do that on the scale required would have the gumption to make the billions in the first place to afford the club. unless of course theyve had it handed to them by virtue of it oozing out of the ground under their feet in the billions of barrels. yes those kind of folks may take a more philantrhotpic / long term view. everyone else will be borrowing the money and will be needing a return to make just the interest on the loans. as utd fans we should know better than most, the very rich most often dont buy stuff with their own money.

 

[Adnan]

Is he bluffing?

Tweet

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The problem with Ratcliffe's ownership at Nice isn't that he isn't competing with PSG but rather that he hasn't been competing with the likes of Marseille or Rennes for champions league places.

Recruitment has also been questionable at Nice where they've signed past it players rather than identify young talent in arguably the biggest talent factory in Europe, which is France imo.

 

[Greck]

my comment was in reference to someone asking for a buyer to come in, clear the debt, buy some players and update the stadium / infrastructure whilst not taking dividends etc.
I doubt anyone minded do that on the scale required would have the gumption to make the billions in the first place to afford the club. unless of course theyve had it handed to them by virtue of it oozing out of the ground under their feet in the billions of barrels. yes those kind of folks may take a more philantrhotpic / long term view. everyone else will be borrowing the money and will be needing a return to make just the interest on the loans. as utd fans we should know better than most, the very rich most often dont buy stuff with their own money.

This. Almost no one is spending 3-6bn on a status symbol. Some of the rationalizations on the matter have been shocking to say the least. Like new owners just want to buy an affiliation to the club and let us retain financial independence. Those already exist, they are called sponsorships.

Yes fans can't do anything about who the club will be sold to but for discussion sake we shouldn't trust anyone until we know they aren't going to make spending 3-6 billion the club's problem. If we're just going to end up in some other form of financial slavery then I'll pass.

 

[Judas]

My hunch remains there’s very little chance Ratcliffe ends up owning us. Still fully expect oil money.

 

[devilish]

Is he bluffing?

Tweet

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The problem with Ratcliffe's ownership at Nice isn't that he isn't competing with PSG but rather that he hasn't been competing with the likes of Marseille or Rennes for champions league places.

Recruitment has also been questionable at Nice where they've signed past it players rather than identify young talent in arguably the biggest talent factory in Europe, which is France imo.

this

 

[ShinjiNinja26]

Load of b

Is he bluffing?

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

The problem with Ratcliffe's ownership at Nice isn't that he isn't competing with PSG but rather that he hasn't been competing with the likes of Marseille or Rennes for champions league places.

Recruitment has also been questionable at Nice where they've signed past it players rather than identify young talent in arguably the biggest talent factory in Europe, which is France imo.

Shock Horror!! That’s been a lot of people’s opinion since he made that late Chelsea bid. A bluffer more interested in getting his name out there than anything else.

 

[RedSky]

Is he bluffing?

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

The problem with Ratcliffe's ownership at Nice isn't that he isn't competing with PSG but rather that he hasn't been competing with the likes of Marseille or Rennes for champions league places.

Recruitment has also been questionable at Nice where they've signed past it players rather than identify young talent in arguably the biggest talent factory in Europe, which is France imo.

I'd say the issue isn't the transfers, it's more a problem that since Viera left they haven't been able to get a Manager in that's sparked. How does Nice work with transfers? Do they have a technical director or is it down to the Manager?

They have signed decent young players but they've also signed a lot of rubbish. So it's a mixed bag.

 

[Champ]

Is he bluffing?

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

The problem with Ratcliffe's ownership at Nice isn't that he isn't competing with PSG but rather that he hasn't been competing with the likes of Marseille or Rennes for champions league places.

Recruitment has also been questionable at Nice where they've signed past it players rather than identify young talent in arguably the biggest talent factory in Europe, which is France imo.

The thing is Nice have been buying youth/young players up to this season so that arguement doesn't hold much weight.

 

[phelans shorts]

Load of b


Shock Horror!! That’s been a lot of people’s opinion since he made that late Chelsea bid. A bluffer more interested in getting his name out there than anything else.

That isn’t even what that tweet is saying. Positive publicity includes getting the fans on side to put pressure on the Glazers supporting his bid.

 

[Mainoldo]

That isn’t even what that tweet is saying. Positive publicity includes getting the fans on side to put pressure on the Glazers supporting his bid.

Yeah I think people got that bit too. It’s obvious he was ass aiming at the top reds. Shame the Stretford Paddock aren’t on his side. Maybe he should pay them.

 

[Adnan]

The thing is Nice have been buying youth/young players up to this season so that arguement doesn't hold much weight.

Which young players have they signed?

 

[ShinjiNinja26]

That isn’t even what that tweet is saying. Positive publicity includes getting the fans on side to put pressure on the Glazers supporting his bid.

No surprise considering what’s coming out regarding his ownership of Nice. I’ll remain sceptical for now and wait until we find out who else is interested in buying the club before I started shouting Ratcliffe from the rooftops.

 

[Greck]

Load of b


Shock Horror!! That’s been a lot of people’s opinion since he made that late Chelsea bid. A bluffer more interested in getting his name out there than anything else.

He's one of them that worries me. Especially when the cons are his actual actions and the pros are surface level things like being a local lad and a fan. I'm not sure what part of JR is supposed to make me excited about his ownership. The sale price sounds like it would be a huge strain on his worth so how anyone can expect him to not touch the club's money is beyond me. Guess we'll just have to see but I don't understand why he's trusted.

 

[Adnan]

Load of b


Shock Horror!! That’s been a lot of people’s opinion since he made that late Chelsea bid. A bluffer more interested in getting his name out there than anything else.

It's a follow up tweet to the tweet below, where it's suggested that he has no intention of paying the asking price and is courting publicity.

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

 

[RedSky]

He's one of them that worries me. Especially when the cons are his actual actions and the pros are surface level things like being a local lad and a fan. I'm not sure what part of JR is supposed to make me excited about his ownership. The sale price sounds like it would be a huge strain on his worth so how anyone can expect him to not touch the club's money is beyond me. Guess we'll just have to see but I don't understand why he's trusted.

It's probably because some of us are desperate that we don't end up being owned by a state ownership and become like PSG/City and co. Frankly for me anyone is better than that and I couldn't even care less if that meant we don't get as much investment as some people demand. I don't want us to become a soulless entity and the excuse of "it doesn't matter who owns us" doesn't fly with me.

 

[Champ]

Which young players have they signed?

This season they've signed a 17 year old, a 19 year old, a 20 year old, two 22 year olds a d a 24 year old, the average age of their squad is 24.

 

[Adnan]

This season they've signed a 17 year old, a 19 year old, a 20 year old, two 22 year olds a d a 24 year old, the average age of their squad is 24.

Who are theses players, are they any good to challenge the likes of Marseille and Rennes?

Because if you look at Nice' squad, it looks like a holiday home for past it players. That will hopefully change now, that they've got a head of football.

 

[TsuWave]

Told you guys this Ratcliffe guy seems like an attention seeker. I also don't have any confidence in that his potential ownership would result in United competing at the top level again.

 

[ShinjiNinja26]

For those desperate for us not to be owned by a state and end up a “soulless” club. The reason the likes of City and PSG are considered soulless entity’s is because those states have propped them up financially and elevated them to a level they wouldn’t otherwise be in if it wasn’t for their intervention. Utd is a completely different proposition as we’re already self sustainable and we would only need the state to clear the debt and front the cash to either renovate or rebuild the stadium. After that we would be in a position to just spend what the club earns on transfers therefor wouldn’t be anything like City, PSG etc..

 

[Red in STL]

No I'm a big time sex haver with multiple real life women

Yet the happiest day of your life will be the Glazers fecking off, well as the saying goes, "there's nowt as weird as folk"!

 

[Red in STL]

So with this in mind a fair price for united is maybe £4.5bn + £1.5bn club and transfers infrastructure commitment

The Glazers want money, they don't give a feck about commitments

 

[Dazzmondo]

After seeing our financial reports any owner that isn't from the Middle East would be a big problem. Dubai probably my first choice, but Kuwait and Bahrain not bad alternatives. Better to have an owner whose first priority isn't profit. Big benefit to have a state that can invest extra into the club through its own sponsorships too to avoid our current problems with FFP. Have never been convinced by Ratcliffe. All a propaganda trip. American ownership repeatedly proving to be incompetent in the world of football.

 

[Champ]

Who are theses players, are they any good to challenge the likes of Marseille and Rennes?

Because if you look at Nice' squad, it looks like a holiday home for past it players. That will hopefully change now, that they've got a head of football.

It really doesn't, you have Ramsey and Kasper there and that's really it.

Pepe is on loan and only 27 years old.

You have been taken in by the fears on here.

 

[croadyman]

Who are the interested parties other than Ineos?

Would love to know

 

[phelans shorts]

For those desperate for us not to be owned by a state and end up a “soulless” club. The reason the likes of City and PSG are considered soulless entity’s is because those states have propped them up financially and elevated them to a level they wouldn’t otherwise be in if it wasn’t for their intervention. Utd is a completely different proposition as we’re already self sustainable and we would only need the state to clear the debt and front the cash to either renovate or rebuild the stadium. After that we would be in a position to just spend what the club earns on transfers therefor wouldn’t be anything like City, PSG etc..

This just isn’t true. You can tell yourself it is, but it isn’t.

 

[croadyman]

Is he bluffing?

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

The problem with Ratcliffe's ownership at Nice isn't that he isn't competing with PSG but rather that he hasn't been competing with the likes of Marseille or Rennes for champions league places.

Recruitment has also been questionable at Nice where they've signed past it players rather than identify young talent in arguably the biggest talent factory in Europe, which is France imo.

If these concerns get verified by a reliable Utd source then will believe there is something in this

 

[Lyng]

It really doesn't, you have Ramsey and Kasper there and that's really it.

Pepe is on loan and only 27 years old.

You have been taken in by the fears on here.

Please enlighten us which of their young talents is going to elevate them then?

 

[Greck]

The Glazers want money, they don't give a feck about commitments

Yeah, think stadium renovation is more of an issue for new owners after the sale has concluded. Glazers aren't going to complicate the sale attaching such post-sale conditions to an already massive asking price. If anything they'll want that extra billion in their pockets. Can't imagine they'll suddenly grow a heart. They're leaving and have even less reason to give a feck than they already did.

 

[Godfather]

And yet, the likely alternatives are people who we cannot judge at all when it comes to football ownership because they never owned a club...

Someone who cut his teeth elsewhere may not be such a bad thing.

I see that first paragraph and I agree. There will always be risks involved. But better an unknown quantity than one that has shown not to be competitive or ambitious enough.

 

[Señor Sloppy]

There seems to be so much talk about INEOS, yet their relatively limited resources mean they'll have an extremely difficult time outbidding the huge American equity firms they'll be competing against.

The big question really is whether Qatar will bite and what it will take for them to do so. By all accounts they do appear to be sniffing around, but haven't yet decided to pull the trigger on tabling a formal bid. What may be the kicker that convinces them to do so?

If they do bid, then there can be little question they'll become the hot favourites.