16 Jul 2025 14:25:59
I've been a regular reader on this site, but I post very rarely. A question for regulars around here:

Do you think Sir Jim Ratcliffe is failing as Manchester United's co-owner? Would you have preferred Mohammed bin Salman to take over the club instead?

Sir Jim Ratcliffe's first year at United has been turbulent. Despite acquiring a 25% stake and gaining control over football operations, his tenure has seen:
Mass redundancies (around 250 staff let go), removal of perks for employees, and unpopular cost-cutting measures.
Poor on-field results, with United languishing in 15th place and struggling in Europe, no measures whatsoever so far to better this by signing players.
Fan frustration, as the Glazers remain involved and the promised transformation hasn't materialized?

1.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 14:36:30
Beyond caring Becks. Multiple cooks in the kitchen, all with contradictory priorities. It’s been a disaster since day one and will end in tears. Clowns the lot of them. I.

2.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 14:37:25
Ratcliffe is as bad as the Glazers….

3.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 15:07:15
Redseven,

Sound like someone on X with that opinion, Ratcliffe isn’t even close to being anything like the Glazers, he’s put his own money into the club for a start. Just because they haven’t signed the fancy player you want for £70m this summer doesn’t mean he’s worse than the Glazers. If we just gave Brentford what they want people would be complaining about that as well. I’m sure we will find a solution soon or move on. Obviously this summer hasn’t been a great one yet but all of this whining and complaining and slagging off of Ratcliffe is just ridiculous imo.

4.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 15:25:41
We need to understand the state the club was in when he took over, but having said that I think he's ern poor. The cost savings have been badly handled and communicated, we have washted money recruiting a Sporting Director, who we then paid off, and despite having 'professionals' in charge, our transfer business hasn't got any better. We backed a Manager who we then sacked, and seem to be floundering right now.

Apart form that he's been awseome.

5.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 15:26:15
And I don't believe he put his own money in either.

6.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 15:26:04
Not good short term optics but bringing our club back from the disastrous position the Glazers and their management teams created was never going to be easy or quick. Before calling Ratcliffe's participation a failure we need at least another season to see if there's a clear arc of improvement. The club is short of cash and has clearly decided that the future lies foremost in accelerating youth development. Even if only a handful of the academy players make it, skillfully handled sales with sell-on clauses should yield continuing bottom line benefits. We're already seeing that happening. We still have some seriously high salaries to unload, the responsibility for which doesn't lie with Ratcliffe's team which has only acquired 2 players so far.

Would Bin Salman have been able to hire the right people? Why would anyone think he would have the capacity to create a management team able to bring us back to the top in one year? The big potential benefit would have been a change in the capital structure but the price the Glazers wanted for a full buyout when coupled with the debt made the investment a dubious one. And had the debt not been paid down on acquisition the club still would have been faced with the same profitability and PSR issues.

Patience is a virtue posses it if you can
Seldom in a woman, but never in a man.

7.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 16:23:42
Sorry but Radcliffe has been a disaster for supporters. sacked like income workers, for what? Then hiked up ticket prices, and ran the club like a circus. £83 for chelsea game utd have charged me. The man hasn't a clue what community is and what man utds history is based on. the day he and the glazers burn the better.

8.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 17:06:03
You got that wrong, it’s not his own money he put in, billionaires and business don’t work like that.
Allegedly!
Besides that he been a disaster but I for one never expected any different, he acts the same every company he involved in, imo he does this big push, then makes awful decisions along the way then spends an age trying to rectify those bad decisions, as with the ETH debacle and the sporting director. You only need to look at the Grenadier vehicle that’s been a disaster from day one.
I personally don’t think he better than the Glazers with all this I have got balling control!
All those all thought he is a United supporter buying in, that’s about same as he was Chelsea supporter buying in…
The Sheik was bit of a non starter he never even proofed funds.

9.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 19:00:47
Don't know anything about the sheik but sjr has been very underwhelming
. maybe won't be here long.

10.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 19:41:41
80k seats and an average of £50 a seat brings in 4 million a game x 2 games weekly

That covers a lot that week not to mention the overpriced prawn sandwiches and beer inside

So matchday revenue must be 5m easily total to 10m a week

Total wage bill weekly leaves 5 million in the pot.

11.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 19:47:58
Finger on the pulse there German. Turned Team Sky into a team of cycling domestiques. Ineos Americas Cup team? 5 years with Sir Ben Ainslie as team manager and head of design, then sacked him in January, now having to have to recruit a complete new design and management team. That said, Nice did finish 4th last year.

12.) 16 Jul 2025
16 Jul 2025 22:36:21
Feels like the soul of the club has been doused in petrol and set on fire. Not sure if SJR lit the inferno, but has he even called the fire brigade yet?

We are waiting to see some green shoots of hope. This was his plan to offer for part of the club. If he can't make it work, it is his fault and his fault alone. He has to get us turned around and driving towards greener pastures soon or I will run out of metaphors ?.

13.) 17 Jul 2025
17 Jul 2025 01:18:51
GDS2. Has nothing to do with who we have or haven’t signed mate. The guy is selling off the soul of the club piece by piece, laying off long-serving staff to save a few Sheckles while simultaneously wasting millions to hire and fire a sporting director. The Chelsea owners are exploring loopholes for ways to pump billions of dollars into the club, but we’re stuck with Ratcliff trying to figure out whether he can save another £7.35 an hour by firing Dorris the lunch lady.

14.) 17 Jul 2025
17 Jul 2025 13:39:09
I think Ratcliffe is here to make money.

If we perform better it will cost more to buy out the glazers. If we perform poorly it will cost less but devalues his own share.

It seems to me here’s going to try to increase the value of the club by reducing our overheads and increasing asset value ie stadia. Then sell his share if with a full buy out or just his element.

I don’t think for one minute a man with such a record for pollution cares about legacy, he’s not here to be a benefactor, he’s here for a return on investment. To a large extent on field success will help but success could be Wenger’s definition - consistent UCL qualification and a solid balance sheet.

15.) 17 Jul 2025
17 Jul 2025 17:32:00
Gds if you believe he put his own money in, I've a bridge to sell you.

He is a scumbag of the highest order but no doubt he knows how to run a business. I'm sure he will bring us back inline, he has already put a lot of footballing pieces in to place.