Battle for United
Furious Manchester United fans last night pledged to unleash a 100,000-strong Red Army to fight a £700million takeover of the club by US tycoon Malcolm Glazer. The biggest shareholders - Irish racehorse tycoons John Magnier and JP McManus - also vowed to block the bid which Old Trafford insiders fear could spark chaos for manager Sir Alex Ferguson. United directors confirmed yesterday they had received an offer. Billionaire Glazer already owns a 19.2 per cent stake and has hired bankers JP Morgan to advise him on how to win control of the club. But Sean Bones of the Shareholders United group said: " We are horrified by the thought of Malcolm Glazer taking over our club. So we are looking to build a communication link of 100,000 United supporters to fight off this bid together. This is a rallying cry for every Manchester United supporter to fight the take-over. I can´t see anything positive whatsoever from Glazer becoming involved."
Clinton Manning and Gary Jones, Daily Mirror
Hands off our club
Malcolm Glazer could back away from bidding for Manchester United after a furious backlash from fans. Many are suspicious of the American tycoon´s motives after he made the first move towards a takeover yesterday and they are planning a campaign to keep him out of Old Trafford in the same way they helped fight off a bid by Rupert Murdoch´s BSkyB empire in 1999. Sean Bones, from the pressure group Shareholders United, said: " We´re horrified by the thought of Glazer taking over our club. If he did, it would obviously be done thanks to taking out a very large loan because he isn´t a sugar daddy."
Richard Tanner, Daily Express
Shove your pot of gold, leprechaun
Manchester United fans last night declared all-out war on Malcolm Glazer as the billionaire tycoon prepared to launch a £700million takeover of the world´s biggest club. Furious United supporters vowed to fight Glazer every step of the way and thwart the American´s plans to turn Old Trafford from a plc back into a privately-owned club. Oliver Houston, spokesman for Shareholders United, said: " This little leprechaun has got nothing to offer but fool´s gold. If he wants a fight, we´ll fight dirty. The headline figure is just the price of the shares, he is not putting any new money in at all. He´s talking about using the club´s assets to raise the money. But United don´t have any debts so why should these assets be put at risk?" And United´s biggest shareholders - Irish racehorse tycoons John Magnier and JP McManus - also vowed to show the would-be buyer the red card. United officials yesterday confirmed they had received a " preliminary offer" for the club from Glazer, who owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers American Football team.
Clinton Manning and Gary Jones, Daily Mirror
Glazer, a snake in sheep´s clothing
Sorry, John Magnier. Sorry, JP McManus. All is forgiven. We now need your help. How ironic. Eight months ago I joined every Manchester United fan in voicing my fury at the two Irish racehorse owners who had fallen out with Sir Alex Ferguson over Rock of Gibraltar and had acquired 28.9% of the shares in Manchester United. ´Get lost, Magnier´ fans chanted at matches, though the actual words were a lot less polite. This morning one can almost hear a mischievous chuckle from Magnier and JP. Now the two Irish millionaires are United fans´ best hope - probably our only hope - of stopping a takeover by American businessman Malcolm Glazer.
Michael Crick, Daily Mail
Glazer: Play ball or else
Malcolm Glazer yesterday made his first direct bid for Manchester United. The American owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers gridiron team outlined a formal proposal to the Old Trafford board which would effectively give the Glazer family control over the running of the club. Glazer has proposed to keep the present management structure in place but in return would want one or two of his sons on the board - and having a major say in the club´s future direction. The alternative is for Glazer to mount a full-scale takeover bid, ousting the current regime and flooding the board with his own people.
Harry Harris, Daily Star
Fergie´s on a promise
Alex Ferguson will get a £25million transfer kitty EVERY year if Malcolm Glazer takes over Manchester United. But Old Trafford fans last night voiced fears the billionaire American will plunge the club into DEBT. Glazer’s pledge to bankroll boss Fergie’s team-building is understood to be part of the £700m takeover plan put to United’s board. But it is also believed he will need to borrow against United’s assets to pull off the deal. That will suddenly leave the world’s richest club in debt. And Oliver Houston, of fans group Shareholders United, says they are dead against the takeover. Houston said: “The long-term success of the football club should not be based on paying out to debt collectors. We already have a club that offers the manager transfer funds in the region that is being proposed in any case. This man is not a Roman Abramovich who will come and pour millions into the club. This is a very serious situation and we need to fight the proposals.”
Neil Custis, The Sun
We´re still in touch says Fergie
Sir Alex Ferguson is refusing to press the panic button despite Arsenal´s nine-point lead over Manchester United in the title race. After two more points were dropped in the 1-1 draw with Middlesbrough, Ferguson said: " It is early days yet. We want to make up ground but we´ve got to do that bit by bit. You can´t just all of a sudden accumulate the points and get behind Arsenal in one game. It is going to take time. We´ve got a free run until March after this international break. That gives you plenty of time to build up momentum."
Richard Tanner, Daily Express
