Stefan Borson ‘very surprised’ by Jim Ratcliffe takeover update
Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe is a largely unpopular figure among the club’s fans following his cost-cutting measures at Old Trafford.
The INEOS chief purchased a 27.7 per cent stake in the Premier League side in February last year after agreeing a £1.25billion deal with the Glazers.
Ratcliffe has now increased his stake in Man United to 28.9 per cent after injecting £238million into the club.
Alongside his shares in United, Ratcliffe also owns a 100 per cent stake in Nice after purchasing the French side for around £85million back in 2019.
The 72-year-old was forced to put his Nice shares into a “blind trust” last year after they qualified for the Europa League alongside United, with Uefa’s rules prohibiting clubs from being controlled by the same owners from competing in the same competition.
The Athletic reported on 2 May Ratcliffe is now exploring the sale of Nice, with New York investment bank Lazard brought in to find a buyer.
INEOS has set a £210million asking price after investing around £182million into the club over the past six years.
Former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson exclusively told Football Insider the Nice sale is unlikely to have any impact on United.
Ruben Amorim’s side currently sit 16th in the Premier League table, while Nice are fourth in Ligue 1.
Man United’s Jim Ratcliffe set for takeover blow
Borson insisted Ratcliffe could struggle to sell Nice due to French football’s broadcasting issues.
He told Football Insider: “I don’t think it’d have much impact on United.
“It’s already in a blind trust anyway because of the Europa League qualification. It would allow them to do deals with Nice because, at the moment, they can’t do deals with them. But I think it’s pretty irrelevant to United.
“The bigger issue he’s got is whether he can make a double-his-money-type deal to sell Nice in circumstances where things have gone quite badly wrong from a financial perspective because the TV deal in French football is in a mess.
“It would be very surprising if they could find a buyer to take it for €250million (£210million), which apparently is the target valuation.
“I’d be pretty sceptical at this stage. But there is often a bigger fool and lots of deals have happened that I didn’t think would happen because of value.
“People seem to have an insatiable appetite for buying football clubs around Europe right now, particularly from the United States, even though it makes very little financial sense.”
Man United’s updated Antony price tag revealed
In terms of on-field matters, Football Insider revealed on 9 May United are ready to sell Antony for £20-30million in the summer window.
The 25-year-old winger is thriving on loan at Real Betis after falling out of favour following Amorim’s appointment.
| Appearances | 22 |
| Goals | 8 |
| Assists | 5 |
Betis are keen to extend his loan, while fellow La Liga side Atletico Madrid are weighing up a summer move for the United flop.
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