TOM BLOW FROM MIRROR
Ratcliffe, who has been linked with a takeover for a number of years, is a self-confessed United fan and grew up in Greater Manchester. Despite his local roots, MUST want to properly analyse his proposal and ensure the fans will be involved in the project.
“We do welcome the interest of Sir Jim Ratcliffe,” Chris Rumfitt, a member of MUST, told Sky Sports News on Wednesday. “What I would say is that we judge every bid by its merits. We welcome his interest and we want to see the nature of his proposal.
“For any bidder, we want to be sure that there won’t be any more debt-laden on the club, we want to be reassured that they have a plan to take United back to the top and we want to be reassured that they plan to work in partnership with the fans.
“We’re all realistic enough to know that the Premier League is a global hub and a global game and you can see where the owners come from. We’re all realistic enough to know that the new owner could come from anywhere.
“That said, most fans of most clubs would love somebody local – a local boy made good – coming back to invest in their club.”
Ratcliffe revealed his interest in buying United to The Times. A spokesperson said: “We have formally put ourselves into the process.”
Ratcliffe, who is a season ticket holder at Stamford Bridge, made a last-minute attempt to complete a takeover of Chelsea last year when Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich was forced to sell up. Todd Boehly’s consortium won that bidding war.
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