After almost a full year of uncertainty, British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe is reportedly set to finalise his purchase 25% stake in Manchester United Football Club, and there are already some serious rumblings about big names he might be bringing on board.
While full confirmation of the purchase is yet to be verified, Sky News is reporting that after months of talks between Man United and Ratcliffe’s INEOS group, the Failsworth-born businessman and the current Glazer ownership are soon to agree on a $33-a-share deal.
It said that Sir Jim and his INEOS Sports arm plan to acquire 25% of both the listed A-shares and the B-shares, which carry greater voting rights on the board and, at present, are held exclusively by the Glazer family
Although this partial purchase will obviously see the Glazers still firmly intertwined with the club, the majority of fans will no doubt be pleased to hear that there is finally some movement and relinquishing of control after 18 years of unrest.
BREAKING: Sir Jim Ratcliffe's INEOS Sports could announce a deal to buy their 25% of Manchester United today 🚨 pic.twitter.com/eIgLzAakuJ
Ratcliffe’s stake in United could be confirmed any day now.
Sources have claimed that the current owners are keen to complete the deal before the Thanksgiving holiday with some of those close to the deal suggesting that it could be wrapped up as soon as Monday, 20 November with a provisional announcement even more imminent.
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In addition to the estimated $1 billion the petrochemical tycoon will be spending to acquire his stake in the club, it is thought that he will also be setting aside roughly £245m to improve the club’s infrastructure — updating Old Trafford being a top priority.
Former frontrunner in the potential United takeover, Shiekh Jassim bin Hamad al Thani, also promised to redevelop the stadium as well as huge investments in the squad and training complexes, all whilst wiping the club’s debt.
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Although Ratcliffe’s initial outlay won’t come anywhere near the Qatari royal’s state-funded vision for the club, having walked away from the deal after failing to meet the Glazers’ ever-changing asking price, the 71-year-old has insisted the purchase of shares will be with his own money and that he will not add any more to United’s current borrowings (roughly £969.6m back in March).
Moreover, perhaps one of the most interesting parts about Ratcliffe’s prospective share purchase is the names that are already being linked with the club should the deal go through.
After CEO Richard Arnold left the club earlier this week, with general counsel Patrick Stewart (not that one) stepping in as interim as they search for a full-time replacement, there is now lots of talk about further shake-ups amongst the board.
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According to The Telegraph, not only is Sir Alex Ferguson set to consult and help guide Sir Jim during his overhaul of the club but names that have been floated as a potential new sporting director include Spurs’ former head of recruitment Paul Mitchell and, believe it or not, football legend Paolo Maldini.
Only time will tell whether there’s any real substance in Maldini’s consideration or whether he’s simply on United’s list but despite being sacked from his role at AC Milan back in June, it would still be a big name with some serious pedigree to help kick off Ratcliffe’s impending era.
While Freedman is thought to be admired by Sir Alex Ferguson, it is understood that Atalanta’s Lee Congerton, former AC Milan pair Paolo Maldini and Ricky Massara, and Atletico Madrid’s Andrea Berta are also under consideration.
Two Greater Manchester-based Paralympians pick up MBEs following Paris 2024 heroics
Danny Jones
A pair of Paralympians born just down the road and honed two discipline-leading national performance centres here in Manchester have officially been awarded MBEs.
The Northerners doing the country proud – sounds about right.
First off, if the name Poppy Maskill doesn’t ring a bell, the promising Paralympic was Team GB’s best-performing para-athlete at Paris 2024 this past summer, contributing a total of five medals towards the nation’s joint-third-highest tally.
After her heroics at the Games, the teenager who turns 20 this weekend (Saturday, 29 March) was the recipient of an early and very prestigious birthday present, becoming one of the youngest individuals to be made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in history.
She was named on the New Year’s Honours list back in December but finally collected her latest medal in person this week following a ceremony at Windsor Castle, being honoured by King Charles III personally.
Hailing from Middlewich just less than an hour away from our city centre, Maskill might be a Cheshire girl by birth, but this young sporting gem is being polished right here at the state-of-the-art Manchester Aquatics Centre (MAC).
The youngster became the first Paralympian to pick up gold back in August after not only winning the 100m butterfly but smashing the world record in the process, too.
Competing in the S14 class – a category for athletes with intellectual impairments – she finished the heat with in just 1:03, surpassing the previous best by more than half a minute. But her impressive performance didn’t stop there.
MAC regular Maskill went on to win two more golds in the S14 100m backstroke and 4 x100m S14 freestyle relay, as well as a pair of silver medals in the 200m freestyle and 200m individual medley S14. Just incredible.
Poppy Maskill wasn’t the only Greater Manchester-based para-athlete who was recognised this month, though, as Stockport‘s very own two-time Paralympic champion Sophie Unwin was also presented with the accolade for her services to sport.
Named a member of the Order along with her co-pilot Jenny Holl, Unwin’s Paris 2024 medal haul included a double of golds in the women’s B 3000m individual pursuit and the road race tandem B, not to mention a silver in the road time trial and a bronze in the 1000m time trial at Paris 2024.
Following in the footsteps of fellow MBE and Stopfordian cycling legend, Dame Sarah Storey, who won her 19th gold medal to become Britain’s greatest Paralympian of all time – having made the most of MAC and the National Cycling Centre over in East Manchester during her career – the borough did us proud.
30-year-old Unwin has kicked on just as strong in the new year as well, notching a narrow victory to set an unofficial (unfortunately) world record of 4:36.737 in the women’s tandem at the 2025 Lloyds National Track Championships here in Manchester.
Former Manchester City player Joey Barton found guilty of assaulting his wife
Danny Jones
Ex-footballer Joey Barton has officially been found guilty of assaulting his wife following his two-day trial in the capital this week.
Barton, who played for Manchester City, Newcastle United, Queens Park Rangers and a number of other clubs, was convicted at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 25 March, following an incident back in June 2021.
The former midfielder left his wife, 37-year-old Georgia Barton (McNeil), with a bleeding nose and a bruise on her forehead following a drunken row at their home in London.
Barton is said to have grabbed and pushed her to the floor before kicking her in the head. Married in 2019, the two have four children and are thought to still be together.
The 42-year-old was still employed in professional football as the manager of Bristol Rovers at the time, but he was ultimately sacked in October 2023.
His wife called 999 at the time, telling police that he had hit her, but later retracted her statement.
Born in Huyton, Merseyside, the chief magistrate Paul Goldspring recognised that the one-time England has a history of violence.
He was given a 12-week suspended prison sentence, meaning he won’t serve time unless he commits another offence and has been ordered to pay £2,138.
Since dropping out of mainstream football, in particular, Barton has come under heavy criticism for allegations of racism, sexism and controversial right-wing politics; he even started an ‘anti-woke’ podcast called Common Sense with Joey Barton.
Back in June of last year, he was ordered to pay £35,000 in damages to settle a libel claim with presenter Jeremy Vine after a series of inflammatory comments made online.
The Radio 2 presenter sued Mr Barton earlier this year, after the former footballer wrote a series of posts suggesting Mr Vine had a sexual interest in children.
He also accused of threatening fellow former pro, Eni Aluko, after a torrent of abuse regarding her punditry online – the ex-England international even went so far as to say she no longer felt safe staying in the country.
Danny Jones -
17th November 2023 
