Explained: Why Sir Jim Ratcliffe's partial Man Utd takeover hasn't been confirmed yet with news expected 'soon'

Manchester United are on the verge of entering a new era with the INEOS CEO heading into the Old Trafford boardroom, but BBC Sport has reported that the announcement which was to be held this week has been postponed until next week.

BBC Sport explained that the original announcement was supposed to be completed during the November international break but it was put to the sidelines in part due to the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States where the Glazers are based.

It was then supposedly to go ahead this week but was put off yet again as a number of the club's officials had travelled to Istanbul, Turkey to watch Manchester United take on Galatasaray with their Champions League hopes hanging in the balance. It is now expected that the announcement will be completed next week barring any surprise hurdles between the two parties.

Ratcliffe and INEOS are expected to take over the sporting side of the club from the Glazers and make wholesale changes to the structure of their think tank with CEO Richard Arnold having already left the club last month. The leadership have already sounded out a few names in their hunt for a new sporting director with names like Paul Mitchell, Dougie Freedman and Michael Edwards.

The fans of the Red Devils have been waiting passionately for the official announcement of the takeover to be sounded as the club has yet again faltered on the field. Erik ten Hag's men's Champions League hopes hang by a thread as they look set to drop down to the Europa League. As for the Premier League, the Red Devils have shown signs of improvement and will next be in action when they take on Newcastle United on Saturday, December 2.