Ten Hag’s Man Utd takeover dream ‘not certain’ with Glazers announcement coming

Erik ten Hag may not be granted his wish of a Manchester United takeover this summer, with the Glazers ‘not certain’ to sell. Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim are both eagerly awaiting the next stage of negotiations, but the duo could be left unhappy if the American family have a change of heart and decide to retain ownership of the club.

After an impressive start to his tenure, winning the Carabao Cup, Ten Hag is keen to bolster his ranks significantly this summer. The ex-Ajax boss has welcomed the arrival of Mason Mount from Chelsea, as well as reuniting with goalkeeper Andre Onana.

However, the Dutch boss has not been able to splash the cash as freely as he may have desired due to the unresolved takeover situation. According to Sky Sports, ‘developments on the sale of United’ are expected next week once the first team return from their pre-season tour of America.

Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe are both awaiting a further indication of the next step, with ‘clarification’ on the situation expected imminently. However, it is stressed that it is ‘not certain’ that a takeover could even happen this summer and that the Glazers have remained adamant throughout the process that there are no guarantees.

News that negotiations will continue over the coming weeks may come at a poor time for Ten Hag, who has desperately longed for clarity on the situation since the summer transfer window opened. He still wants to sign at least one striker, with a central defender to replace Harry Maguire also high on the shopping list.

The Telegraph reported earlier this summer that the club’s pursuit of Atalanta’s Rasmus Hojlund were being held up due to uncertainty surrounding budgets, and, if he joins the club, he will have missed pre-season with his new team-mates.

According to The Sun, ex-West Ham skipper Declan Rice was also a target at Old Trafford this summer and Ten Hag was ‘furious’ that he could not push for the England international due to the takeover saga. Instead, rather than pursuing the target, he was forced to watch on from the sidelines as the playmaker made the move to Arsenal.

Ten Hag has never shied away from addressing the ongoing negotiations and remained somewhat calm in the public eye, though there was a glimpse of his frustration last month when he aimed a subtle shot at the higher powers at the Theatre of Dreams, saying: “Now we are far away, so we have a lot of work to do. We’ve made progress, but we need better players if we want to compete for the highest. But I don’t have so much patience, that is one of my mistakes.”