Manchester United part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe is reportedly ready to sell Nice after he was unable to buy one of their players for the Red Devils.
Ratcliffe vowed to take United back to the summit of world football when he entered the club as part-owner. As a United fan, he has become accustomed to seeing them shine in all competitions, but that’s not been the case of late.
In the season just gone, while they won the FA Cup, the Red Devils failed spectacularly in the Premier League – the eighth-placed finish they registered their worst in the history of the competition.
As such, Ratcliffe has work on his hands to take United back to the top.
Having inserted some new members of the board, the next step is to make some big signings.
Ratcliffe was looking at one from Nice – the other club he owns – in order to plug a gap in the defence, made by the departure of Raphael Varane.
Indeed, he knows a lot about centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo, and felt he’d be a solid addition at United.
But after advanced talks for the defender, UEFA essentially blocked that move, because of the fact Ratcliffe owns both, and they’ll both be playing in Europa League next season,.
Indeed, the transfer between the parties would have broken one of the governing body’s rules.
Ratcliffe prepares to sell after failed signing
And as a result, a huge decision is coming on Ratcliffe’s future with one of those clubs.
Football Insider states that after the failure to sign Todibo, the United part-owner is ready to sell his stake in Nice.
That’s as he does not want to be restricted by multi-club ownership rules.
And having just bought United, who are clearly the bigger brand in world football, it seems he wants to prioritise taking them forwards.
Given the process of selling the club is likely to take some time, it’s unlikely United will be able to sign Todibo any time soon.
But once Ratcliffe is free of his stake in Nice, he could go after any of their players.
And given he’s been the owner since 2019, he’ll know which of their assets could become stars in the future.
