Ex-director preparing ‘hostile bid’ for United

The protests last Sunday both outside and inside Old Trafford were only the beginning of a climate of general discontent. Manchester United fans want a change in ownership of the club which is why UK businessman, Michael Knighton, is planning to make the club’s current owners, the Glazer family a “spectacular”.

Time for the Glazers to go

Knighton, a former United director who unsuccessfully attempted to buy the club in 1989, was a guest to YouTube show, Man Utd The Religion, and made his intentions clear. “We are a club in crisis and we all know the reason why. We have inept and frankly useless ownership, who little about this game of football. Everyone knows that we need new ownership of this football club. We are now working on the offer document. Remember, it is a hostile bid - that simply means that the club is not officially for sale, but my intention is to present these owners with a legitimate and potent, proper commercial offer to say, ‘You’ve run out of road. It’s time to go’,” the applicant explained in the programme.

“We need to rid our football club of this ownership, they’ve had their time, it’s over and we’ve had 17 years of disappointment, really. It’s time for them to go”, continued Knighton, who says he already has a consortium with which to make the proposal to the Glazers.

But, despite being increasingly pressured by the chants and demonstrations of the masses, after their dismal performance last season, the Glazer have no intention of selling. They bought the club for more than 800 million pounds in 2005 and insist on their desire to continue running the club.

Knighton’s offer is, however, further evidence of discontent with the Glazers, who have also failed to increase United’s value as a company. In fact, the club has lost has lost about 19% of its value since it was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2012, with a price of 14 dollars per share.