MANCHESTER UNITED bidder Sir Jim Ratcliffe is planning to make a huge transfer revamp at Old Trafford according to reports.
Meanwhile, Harry Maguire has been offered an escape route by Italian giants AC Milan.
Elsewhere, United have been dealt a huge injury boost after Casemiro was spotted in Brazil training this week.
The midfielder picked up a knock against Brentford and was touch and go on whether he would play for his national side.
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Ratcliffe tipped for bigger stake
Sir Jim Ratcliffe could pursue a bigger stake in United after a few years if his bid for an initial 25% share goes through.
That’s the view of Dr Rob Wilson, a football finance expert and professor of economics at Sheffield Business School, as Ratcliffe moves closer to a deal with current club owners the Glazers.
Dr Wilson told investment platform Saxo: “The Ratcliffe bid comes down to the basics of finance. The Glazers clearly want more than the perceived market value of Manchester United Football Club and it presents the idea that Sheikh Jassim’s [reported £6billion] bid was undervaluing the organisation.
“The Ratcliffe bid allows Jim to have a smaller investment at this stage and then look at using his knowledge investment to see where the club can go in the next five years, and I imagine he will then be able to take a bigger stake as things unfold.
“A lot will also depend on sporting and financial performance of the organisation and requirements for any stadium, redesign, maintenance or re-development.”
Hurdles remain over Ratcliffe deal
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s bid for a 25% share in United still has significant stumbling blocks.
The Ineos owners hopes to control the sporting side and has reportedly voiced his concerned over the Red Devils’ transfer policies in recent years – such as Casemiro’s costly arrival in his 30s.
Ratcliffe is the only bidder left after Sheikh Jassim baulked at the “outlandish” £6billion valuation of United made by current owners the Glazers.
Issues that need resolving are thought to include how Ineos are represented on the Red Devils’ board and how the different groupings would work together.
That means more talks before any investment can go ahead.
Bat blow hits Red Devils for six
Sofyan Amrabat has become the latest Manchester United star to suffer an injury.
The Morocca midfielder was forced to withdraw from international duty this week.
Amrabat was a notable absentee from the 3-0 win over Liberia 3-0.
And he also missed Morocco’s friendly with the Ivory Coast on Saturday.
Al Ayam say the on-loan United midfielder was not involved due to an unspecified injury.
That makes him a serious doubt for Saturday’s Prem trip to Sheffield United.
VDB is ‘role model’
Ex-United defender Paul Parker claims Old Trafford outcast Donny van de Beek is a “role model” who can teach his squad-mates plenty.
But the former England star claims the ex-Ajax midfielder was “treated bad” by ex-United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and should move back to Holland.
Credit: Kenny Ramsay Parker told SpilXperten: “I feel really, really sorry for Donny van de Beek even though I’m sure he wouldn’t want me to feel sorry for him.
“I’m sure that not many bad words will be said about him when he leaves, because people are more disappointed by the outcome of his potential rather than the way he has acted at Man United.”
“It would have been so easy for him to go on Social Media and moan but he has never done that. Other players can learn a lot from him, despite him not being able to get his breakthrough at Man United. He is a role model.”
Parker added: “Solskjaer treated him bad with keeping him on the bench all the time. Obviously, it was a tough time for everyone in the world during the pandemic, but maybe even more for him.”
“He might be as low as he has ever been in football. The only place, in my opinion, where he can start again, is back in the Netherlands. He has to go back to the Netherlands.”
“People are saying that he has been given the chance but that’s not true. He has been given two minutes here and there, which doesn´t help him. He would love the opportunity to get away from Manchester United.”
Man Utd star nearing exit
Anthony Martial has MONTHS to show his worth or risk walking away from Manchester United.
The Frenchman, who has a contract until the end of the season plus a one-year option, endured an injury-hit campaign last season.
Martial has slipped behind summer signing Rasmus Hojlund in the pecking order this season, scoring one goal in nine appearances.
And according to recent reports, Erik Ten Hag and United are unsure whether to extend Martial’s contract.
United are keeping their options open with the French striker, with much depending on how he performs between now and the end of the season.
But his only goal this season was in the EFL Cup victory at home to Crystal Palace.
As such, they could let the big-money signing walk away from the club for free next summer.
Man United stars’ initiations revealed
Mason Mount and Andre Onana both performed their initiation songs during Manchester United’s summer trip to Las Vegas, according to reports.
The summer arrivals both joined the Red Devils in time to link up with their US pre-season tour.
As is customary for new players, they both got up in front of their new team-mates to belt out a tune.
Mount’s Sin City performance has so far been kept under wraps.
According to the Mail, however, Onana’s song choice has been revealed.
They claim that the Cameroon star performed his favourite tune Alleluia by French group Les Medecins de Medeline.
Man Utd legend mocked online
Gary Neville was savagely mocked by Jamie Carragher for his choice of jacket ahead of his interview with Eddie Hearn on Stick to Football.
Neville, 48, recently created the new YouTube show alongside Sky Sports colleague Carragher, as well as Roy Keane, Jill Scott and Ian Wright.
Neville was seen chatting to Hearn as Carragher entered the frame.
And he was quick to comment on the black and white jacket Neville had chosen to wear for the broadcast.
The Liverpool legend said: “What the f*** is that? Where’s he got this?”
Neville initially laughed it off, replying: “It’s a bit of product replacement.”
Carragher continued: “Is it Off-White? It’s offside.”
Maguire compared with David Beckham
Dimitar Berbatov believes that Harry Maguire can have a Man United redemption story like David Beckham.
The former forward told Betfair: “Harry Maguire was good against Brentford. The only thing he can do is stay concentrated when given the chance to perform and not make silly mistakes.
“When he speaks, you can see that Harry is confident in his ability, when he was given the captains armband, his confidence obviously increased, but so did his ego.
“Now the captain’s armband has been taken away, his ego is hurt. He needs to start rebuilding his relationship with the fans again. The chance is there for him to show he can handle everything again.
“Maybe, like we saw in the Beckham documentary, Harry is going through that tough time right now but hopefully, in the end he can find redemption at the end of his own movie.”
Former star on Ten Hag
Dimitar Berbatov believes that Erik ten Hag CAN handle big egos – contrary to what Zlatan Ibrahimovic thinks.
He told Betfair: “I heard Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s comments about Ten Hag not being able to handle the egos at the club. In big teams like Man United, it’s impossible not to have big egos.
“Even as a player, if you don’t already have one, once you sign for a club like Man United, you’re going to get an ego. When you’re a manager of a team like Man United, you need to know to handle it.
“Back in the day, I was in a United team with plenty of egos, trust me. But then you had Sir Alex, and he knew how to control it all. He built his authority throughout the years with his success and his principles of how the club should be lead.
“Obviously, Ten Hag doesn’t have 20 years of experience with Man United, he has one. Having said that, I think he has the authority. He’s shown it before with Cristiano Ronaldo, and now Jadon Sancho.”
Berba: Rooney wants United job
Former Manchester United star Dimitar Berbatov reckons his former team-mate and new Birmingham boss Wayne Rooney wants to manage the Red Devils one day.
He told Betfair: Wayne was waiting for an opportunity like the one at Birmingham and he’s taken it straight away. He was preparing for something like this whilst he was in America.
I’m pretty sure he’s preparing for the top job because that’s the ultimate goal.
“When you have someone like Wayne, you can’t think he’ll stay at a smaller club all his life and manage them, he’s building step by step and I respect that.
“He’s climbing the managerial ladder right now I’m sure at one stage he will go for the Man United job. I think he’s preparing for the day his phone rings and he’s told that Man United are waiting for him.
“I’ll be curious as to how he does. I’ll be watching. It’s good to have John O’Shea by your side going into battle because I’ve been there with both of them and I know the connection they have.”
Pellistri helps Uruguay beat Brazil
Man United winger Facundo Pellistri started for Uruguay as they beat Brazil 2-0 last night.
The 21-year-old played 88 minutes of the match, with Darwin Nunez and Nicolas de la Cruz grabbing his side’s goals.
Casemiro was on the losing side, skippering Brazil in Montevideo.
Credit: Reuters Rashford on song for country
Marcus Rashford scored a brilliant goal for England last night.
The Man United forward was handed a start by Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate.
With the score level at 1-1, Rashford arrowed a brilliant 57th minute shot into the back of the net.
Harry Kane went on to extend England’s advantage, with Rashford playing the full 90 minutes of the 3-1 win.
Credit: Rex Red Devils old boy update
Angel Di Maria has announced his retirement date from the Argentina national team will be after Copa America 2024.
The Manchester United flop expressed his gratitude to team-mate Lionel Messi, saying “I’m grateful to have seen you every day” at Paris Saint-Germain.
Di Maria told Todo Pasa: “I will leave Argentina national team after Copa America — it’s over for me.”
In 2014 Di Maria signed for Manchester United from Real Madrid in a then-British record deal worth £59.7 million.
But he would spend just one year at Old Trafford, later complaining about the bad weather and calling Louis van Gaal the “worst coach” he has ever had.
Rasmus Hojlund on injury fears
Rasmus Hojlund has claimed San Marino “targeted” him after he was substituted by Denmark during their Euro 2024 qualifer amid injury fears.
The Manchester United forward, 20, was replaced in stoppage time at the end of his country’s 2-1 win over the minnows on Tuesday night.
Hojlund, who suffered a back injury at the beginning of the season, then gave his take as he accused the San Marino players of carrying out a planned attack on him.
He said: “I feel they targeted me, as you can see at the end. I understand Italian and I could hear them saying that they had the idea to crush me.
“You can see from the images that he only had one idea in mind.”
Red Devils starlet left out
Alejandro Garnacho was an unused substitute as Argentina beat Peru 2-0 last night.
The Red Devils starlet travelled to South America to link up with the world champions at the start of the international break, but also failed to get on in their previous match against Paraguay.
This season, Garnacho has been limited to just five minutes of action for Argentina, coming last month against Bolivia.
He will hope for more opportunities to shine when back at United.
Credit: Getty
Casemiro in action last night
Man United star Casemiro was in action for Brazil against Uruguay last night.
The midfielder wore the captain’s armband as the Selecao took on their South American rivals in Montevideo.
Unfortunately for the 31-year-old his side fell to a 2-0 defeat, courtesy of goals by Darwin Nunez and Nicolas de la Cruz.
Credit: Rex Red Devils takeover latest news
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s £1.35billion 25 per cent takeover of Manchester United has been delayed, according to reports.
The 70-year-old’s bid was initially expected to be given the green light in a Red Devils board meeting this week.
Sheikh Jassim withdrew from the race last week, clearing the path for Ratcliffe to agree a minority stake with the Glazer family.
But according to the Telegraph, there are still finer details with Ratcliffe’s bid that need to be ironed out.
They claim that a deal is still expected within the next fortnight, however, with Ratcliffe keen to get started.
The Ineos chief wants to be granted control of football operations at United.
He is hoping to have attained control ahead of the January transfer window.
Man Utd star captains country
Scott McTominay wore the captain’s armband as Scotland faced France last night.
In the absences of usual skippers Andy Robertson and John McGinn, the Manchester United star was awarded the honour of captaining his country for the first time.
Things got off to a bright start for the experimental Scots as they took the lead in Lille via Billy Gilmour.
But two goals by Benjamin Pavard and efforts by Kylian Mbappe and Kingsley Coman consigned Steve Clarke’s side to a 4-1 defeat.
Credit: Kenny Ramsay Red Devils after Portuguese starlet
Manchester United are interested in Benfica star Joao Neves, according to reports.
According to German reporter Florian Plettenberg, the Red Devils are lining up a move for the 19-year-old at the end of the season.
Neves replaced Chelsea star Enzo Fernandez in Benfica’s first team.
But he is unlikely to leave in January as the Argentine star did.
Credit: Rex No Scott McTominay rush
Manchester United are in no rush to sell Scott McTominay ahead of the January transfer window.
McTominay was available in the summer transfer window with West Ham and Fulham interested.
However, a move did not materialise as the Hammers and the Cottagers held onto Lucas Paqueta and Joao Pahlinha respectively.
According to 90min, United would still be willing to sell the Scotland international if they received the right offer.
However, the Red Devils are in no rush now after the 26-year-old’s match-winning goals against Brentford.
Credit: Alamy Neville at Dragons’ Den
Manchester United legend Gary Neville “owned the chair” when he made his Dragons’ Den debut, Deborah Meaden has revealed.
The programme will return to the BBC next year as they use guest celebrities to join the usual panel of Peter Jones, Meaden, Touker Suleyman, Sara Davies as well as Steven Bartlett.
A first next year in @BBCDragonsden when we have some guest Dragons…
First up @GNev2 who was utterly brilliant and owned that chair!!
Deborah Meaden
Sheikh-ing things up
Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al-Thani could launch a bid to buy Tottenham after withdrawing his Manchester United takeover offer.
Sheikh Jassim is understood to have submitted a £5billion offer to purchase United in full- which he has now withdrawn after months of stalemate.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe is now set to buy a 25 per cent stake in the club for around £1.4bn.
And now the Sheikh could turn his attention to Spurs, report The Mirror.
Paris Saint-Germain owner Nasser Al-Khelaifi is believed to have played a role in Sheikh Jassim’s United bid, and the pair could link up once again to discuss a move for the North Londoners.
Qatar have held a long-term interest in Tottenham while the Qatari banker has always eyed Spurs as an alternative to United should his bid fail, which it now has.
Man Utd rivals sponsorship
INEOS will continue sponsoring Tottenham despite owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe buying 25 per cent of Manchester United.
Branding of the company’s car named the Grenadier 4×4 is seen prominently around the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Logos can even be spotted on the headrests in the stadium’s dugout.
Meanwhile, Spurs players have featured in the firm’s corporate videos that promote the vehicle.
According to The Telegraph, that there are no signs the agreement between INEOS and the North Londoners’ chairman Daniel Levy is set to end despite Ratcliffe closing in on part-owning United.
Sir Jim’s company has been with Tottenham since December 2020 when their Hygienics branch were surprisingly announced as the club’s official hand sanitiser supplier during the pandemic.
England 3-1 Italy
England defeated Italy at Wembley to confirm their place at Euro 2024.
The Three Lions trailed after Gianluca Scamacca’s 15th-minute opener.
But captain Harry Kane equalised from the penalty spot in the 32nd minute.
Manchester United star Marcus Rashford turned the game on its head after 57 minutes and Kane sealed the win 20 minutes later.
Credit: Getty El Ghazi suspended
Former Premier League star Anwar El Ghazi has been suspended by Mainz after a social media post about the current conflict in Israel and Gaza.
Ex- Aston Villa ace El Ghazi uploaded a pro-Palestine Instagram statement – which he has since deleted.
But the Bundesliga outfit have confirmed the winger has been suspended, saying he’s been taken off football duties for an “intolerable position.”
The Netherlands international, previously linked with Manchester United, only joined the German side last month on a free transfer.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
