Maguire ‘eyebrows raised’ at Man United after ‘insidious’ reveal
Infighting among Man United shareholders is not good news for the current regime.
That is according to finance guru and Football Insider columnist Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively after Nick Train expressed grievances with the club’s handling of the European Super League debacle.
Through his investment vehicle Lindsell Train UK, Train is United’s largest individual shareholder outside of the under-fire Glazer family.
In a statement released to clients, Train wrote that he had “requested meetings” with United to discuss “reputational damage” caused by the ESL.
Maguire discussed United’s handling of their publicly listed shares and explained how Train’s remarks indicated the severity of their current predicament.
“He’s got 27 per cent of the public float,” he told Football Insider correspondent Adam Williams.
“When you’ve got a significant shareholder being critical of the board and the quality of the decisions being made, it is indicative of a board that is on the back foot.
“We have seen Man United say that fans do have the opportunity to buy shares on the market so the club can’t be criticised for that. I thought saying that was very insidious.
“If you’re effectively encouraging fans to buy into the club, there is a fixed number of shares in the club so it is an attempt to drive up the share price. That will in turn shore up the wealth of the Glazers.
“Nick Train is keen on football as an investment opportunity but he’s also incredibly professional.
“So when that statement like that goes out in a newsletter to his clients, eyebrows are going to be raised.”
In other news, Man United move into pole position to sign promising young forward.