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- Glazer family yet to sell United
- Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim the frontrunners
- Beckham knows his ideal successor
WHAT HAPPENED? The Glazers have mulled over who will succeed them as the club's owners for the best part of a year, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos Group and Qatari Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani the frontrunners. Both lodged bids of around£5 billion ($6bn) for United earlier this yearbut neither have been accepted as of yet. While Sheikh Jassim's team was only interested in a 100 percent buyout, Ratcliffe is said to now be seeking a minority stake with a view to permanently taking over eventually. Now, Red Devils legend Beckham has spoken about the uncertainty hanging over the club, how that may be affecting their results on the pitch, and manager Erik ten Hag. The former England international did not go as far as saying who would be the ideal candidate to replace the Glazers, despite saying he knows who is up to the task.
WHAT THEY SAID: He told Sky Sports: "Well let's see. I think he [Ten Hag] is a good coach. It is a difficult time at the moment but there is a lot of noise around the club so it can't be easy for him. We all want that noise to go away and we want a decision to be made but [also] for the club, the fans, the players and the manager as well.
"We are one of, if not, the biggest club in the world. We want stability and I think that is the most important thing. We all have our favourites of who we feel that need to run and look after the club and take the club back to where it belongs. In our eyes, in the fans' eyes, we are number one. We want to be back at the top. I believe I know the right people to do that."
When asked if that was Sheikh Jassim, he smiled and said: "We will see."
THE BIGGER PICTURE:The Glazers, who have owned the club since 2005, announced last November they wereconsidering selling United but a breakthrough is yet to happen. The American family own approximately 69% of the Red Devils, with the rest spread among multiple stakeholders who own shares listed in New York. United fan group, The 1958, held a protest outside Old Trafford before their 2-1 win over Brentford on Saturday, but it appears the Glazers are in no hurry to move on. United currently sit 10th in the Premier League, eight points behind leaders Tottenham.
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GettyWHAT NEXT? It has been 11 months since the Glazers announced plans to explore strategic alternatives for investment, but recent reports suggest the American family are reluctant to sell up. And if Ratcliffe takes a minority stake, they could stay at United for the foreseeable future.