Glazer family: Owners of Man Utd consider selling club
Sports

Glazer family: Owners of Man Utd consider selling club

Manchester United’s owners the Glazer family say they are considering selling the club as they “explore strategic alternatives”. The Americansbought the Old Trafford outfit for £790m ($1.34bn)in 2005. It comes after years of protest from fans against their ownership. A statement from the club said the board will “consider all strategic alternatives, including new investment into the club, a sale, or other transactions involving the company”. It added that the process “will include an assessment of several initiatives to strengthen the club, including stadium and infrastructure redevelopment, and expansion of the club’s commercial operations on a global scale” to enhance “the long-term success of the club’s men’s, women’s and academy teams, and bringing benefits to fans and other stakeholders”. In 2012,the Glazers sold 10% of their holdingvia a stock listing and have sold further shares in the following years. “As we seek to continue building on the club’s history of success, the board has authorised a thorough evaluation of strategic alternatives,” said executive co-chairmen and directors Avram Glazer and Joel Glazer. “We will evaluate all options to ensure that we best serve our fans and that Manchester United maximizes the significant growth opportunities available to the club today and in the future. “Throughout this process we will remain fully focused on serving the best interests of our fans, shareholders, and various stakeholders.” The Glazer family have owned NFL side Tampa Bay Buccaneers since 1995 and Avram Glazer bought a team in the new United Arab Emirates Twenty20 cricket league in 2021. Joel and Avram took over the day-to-day running of United after their father Malcolm suffered a stroke in April 2006. Billionaire Malcolm died aged 85 in 2014. American investment firm Raine Group,who handled Chelsea’s £4.25bn sale in May,is acting as United’s exclusive financial advisor. The statement from the clubadded: “There can be no assurance that the review being undertaken will result in any transaction involving the company. “Manchester United does not intend to make further announcements regarding the review unless and until the board has approved a specific transaction or another course of action requiring a formal announcement.” United, who are fifth in the Premier League, have not won the title since 2013 and have not won a trophy since claiming the Europa League and EFL Cup in 2017. There have been multiple protests against the Glazers’ ownership in recent years,including one in May 2021which caused United’s home league match against Liverpool to be postponed. Thousands of supporters marched to Old Trafford in protest before the same fixture this season, in August. United were part of the failed European Super League project which rapidly collapsed in April 2021. Manchester United co-chairman Joel Glazerlater apologisedfor the unrest caused. He has since attended fans’ forums in the wake of supporter unrest and pledged to make shares available to the club’s followers. According to Transfermarkt,United have a net spend of 1.36bn euros (£1.18bn) on transfers under the Glazers, with only Manchester City having a higher figure in that period. Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo, wholeft Manchester United with immediate effecton Tuesday,criticised the club ownershipin a controversial interview last week saying the Glazer family “don’t care about the club” on the sporting side. The move to sell United comes after Liverpool chairman Tom Werner saidFenway Sports Group were “exploring a sale”of the Anfield club. A Bloomberg reportin August 2022 said the Glazer family were willing to sell a minority stake in the club. British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffesaid he would be interestedin buying Unitedbefore he statedin October that the Glazer family had told him they did not want to sell. Source: BBC

Read More
Man City v Chelsea – all you need to know about all-English Champions League final
Sports

Man City v Chelsea – all you need to know about all-English Champions League final

It’s an all-English Champions League final – but will it be Manchester City or Chelsea who will be crowned champions of Europe on Saturday? Premier League champions City are looking to win the prestigious competition for the first time. Chelsea, European champions in 2012, have beaten Pep Guardiola’s side twice in the league and FA Cup in 2020-21. Up to 16,500 people will be allowed inside Porto’s Estadio do Dragao ground to watch. Both sides have fully fit squads to choose from, although City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan looked like he took a minor knock in Friday’s training session after a collision with Fernandinho. ‘Win you’re a hero – lose you’re almost a failure’ “I know exactly the way we want to play, with who we’re going to play and I’m not going to bother them much,” Guardiola said. “It’s an incredible experience to be here. I know exactly what I’m going to tell them. The guys who are anxious and nervous, I will tell them that’s normal. “I’m pretty sure we have to suffer to win the final. It’s nice to say enjoy it but sometimes it’s not possible. You have to be resilient and adjust.” City midfielder Kevin de Bruyne said: “If you win, you’re a hero. If you lose, you’re almost a failure. Coming to this stage is incredibly well done by the team but if you don’t win it’s something you don’t want to experience. “It’s been one of the goals of the club and the players. Being able to be there tomorrow [Saturday] and to perform on the highest stage in the world is something of a privilege.” City’s Spanish boss Guardiola is looking to win the Champions League for a third time after steering Barcelona to triumphs in 2009 and 2011. Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel is seeking his first Champions League success. Last season, the German took Paris St-Germain to the final, losing 1-0 to Bayern Munich. “I have full trust that everybody wants it,” said Tuchel. “It is about hunger and always on the highest level in sport it comes down to how bad do you want it? I have felt us very concentrated, focused and disciplined in the build-up this week. “It’s always tough to play against City, Bayern or Barcelona when Pep is on the sidelines. He creates huge belief and success and has a huge winning mentality. “Maybe in the moment they are the strongest team in Europe, in the world, and they have built a huge gap between us in the league but we closed the gap for 90 minutes in Wembley and closed the gap again in Manchester.” The final will be decided on the day, with 30 minutes of extra time and then penalties if required. Each side will be allowed five substitutions, with a sixth permitted for each side if the final goes to extra time. Tuchel said: “The penalty shootout [in the Europa League final] was fantastic in terms of quality from the takers. I don’t think I have ever seen something like this – 20 penalties in a row with no miss and so well taken. “We have identified the guys who should take the penalties for us but I don’t know who is in the end on the pitch so we need to be well aware but if we go to penalties we go in together and out together.” The video assistant referee (VAR) system will be used, while City have been designated the ‘home’ team, which means they will play in their traditional sky blue and white colours. This year’s final will air in over 200 countries around the world, with the opening ceremony taking place about 10 minutes before the biggest game in European club football kicks off. §  Champions League final: Pick your combined Man City v Chelsea XI §  Chelsea return unsold Champions League final tickets §  Champions League final: Should Uefa be more flexible for environmental reasons? §  Guardiola does not care about referee §  ‘Winning Champions League will acknowledge their greatness – Gullit on Foden & Mount Where is it taking place? The final was due to be staged at Istanbul’s Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Turkey but was switched earlier this month to the Portuguese city of Porto because of coronavirus restrictions. Portugal is on England’s green list for travel, so players and fans can attend without having to quarantine on their return home. Turkey is on the red list. It is the second successive year the final has been held in Portugal, with Lisbon the location for the delayed final stages of last season’s competition. The Estadio do Dragao hosted the 2019 Nations League final and was built for Euro 2004. City have played at the venue in this season’s Champions League, with Pep Guardiola’s side held to a goalless draw by Porto in the group stage in December. Chelsea also played Porto on their way to the final but both legs of their quarter-final in April were played in Spain at Sevilla’s Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium because of coronavirus travel restrictions between Portugal and the UK at that time – the country was moved to the green list on 17 May. How many fans will be at final? The 2020 final between Bayern Munich and Paris St-Germain was played behind closed doors in Lisbon. However, there will be up to 16,500 supporters present for this year’s edition – about one-third of Estadio do Dragao’s capacity – with Manchester City and Chelsea each receiving an allocation of approximately 6,000 tickets. Chelsea have returned more than 800 unsold tickets. There was a high demand for 2,800 tickets which were sold with independent travel. However, the unsold tickets were part of a charter package, which included subsidised flights at £200. Meanwhile, a further 1,700 tickets made available by Uefa for the general public sold out on Tuesday. How to follow on the BBC BBC Radio 5 Live will have full commentary of the final from 20:00 BST with commentator John Murray and former Chelsea and Blackburn striker Chris Sutton at the ground. Fans will be able to give

Read More
Monaco defender Badiashile confirms Man United DID bid to sign him last summer
Sports

Monaco defender Badiashile confirms Man United DID bid to sign him last summer

Monaco centre back Benoit Badiashile has confirmed that Manchester United did make an offer to sign him last summer but insists he has no regrets about a transfer not materialising. The 19-year-old, who burst onto the scene two years ago for the Ligue 1 club, was reportedly subject to a bid of £22million from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in September. But France Under-21 international Badiashile believes it was the ‘right decision’ to stay at Monaco – he has since gone on to make 25 Ligue 1 appearances this season, with the club fourth in the table and six points off first-placed Lille. ‘It was the right choice [to stay at Monaco], first off is I have not enjoyed good seasons since I have been at Monaco,’ Badiashile told French outlet RMC Sport. ‘We played to stay up and so now I am really experiencing the top of the table and I think that continuing with the club that formed me was the right decision and this is being proved by the season that we are having.’ Then, when questioned about whether he had any regrets about missing out on a move to Manchester, the teenager said: ‘No, not at all.’ Badiashile made his first-team debut for Monaco at the age of 17 in a 4-0 defeat to PSG in November 2018. He has since gone on to make 70 more appearances for the principality club and is now a regular starter in Niko Kovac’s side. The Frenchman played all 90 minutes as Monaco kept a clean sheet at champions PSG on Sunday night, moving them within two points of the champions. United have been linked with a number of different centre backs in recent weeks, including the likes of Sevilla’s Jules Kounde, Real Madrid’s Raphael Varane and RB Leipzig’s Ibrahima Konate. Braga’s David Carmo, Villarreal’s Pau Torres and Lille’s Sven Botman are other central defenders who are interesting the Red Devils, amid speculation they are eyeing a new long-term partner for captain Harry Maguire. United have conceded 32 goals in 25 league games this season, as they look to challenge neighbours City for the title – they are currently ten points behind the runaway leaders. m.allfootballapp Please contact Apexnewsgh.com on email apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications. Contact: 0555568093

Read More
Is Chairman Wontumi really serious to buy Pogba of Manchester United?
Sports

Is Chairman Wontumi really serious to buy Pogba of Manchester United?

  Is Chairman Wontumi serious with his pronouncement to buy Pogba for Ashanti Kotoko or is one of those joke talks of his? He hinted that signing Pogba for Kotoko will bring the world’s attention to the Ghana football and the club. He also talked about the possible fortune he stands to earn from the deal as a businessman. “I believe in Nana Yaw Amponsah. I think that guy has vision to help Ghana’s football so I have asked them to go to Manchester United to trigger the release clause of Paul Pogba… You know day in day out his price comes down and now I learnt it’s around £53M. I will pay”. “I want to bring him to Kumasi Asante Kotoko SC and tell the world that there’s a club in Ghana bigger than Manchester United.” “There’s a business aspect that you haven’t seen but I will make returns through the sale of his jerseys and others so paying his weekly wages would not be a problem at all”, he added. Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana Please kindly contact Apexnewsgh.com on email:apexnewsgh@gmail.com for your credible news publications.

Read More