Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman is reportedly preparing a £4 billion takeover bid to buy Manchester United.
United’s current owners Joel and Avram Glazer are understood to have already indicated that the club is not for sale, but that has not deterred Bin Salman.
The oil-rich Saudi is thought to be worth around £850 billion and hopes to rival Manchester City’s Abu Dhabi owners as part of his vision to diversify his country’s economy by 2030.
United were recently valued at £3.2 billion by Forbes, and The Mirror reports that Bin Salman is ready to add another £800 million onto his bid in an attempt to convince the Glazer family to sell.
However, United’s owners are wary of entering any dialogue with Bin Salman due to the tense current diplomatic situation surrounding the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Avram Glazer had been due to fly out to Riyadh this week in order to attend an International Forum, but he is one of a number of high-profile withdrawals due to the situation surrounding Khashoggi’s death.