Gary Neville and his fellow Manchester United fans could be about to have their "biggest fear" realised after it emerged that the Glazers are confident of remaining as the club's owners.
Since an announcement last November, United have been on the market. For much longer than that, supporters like Neville have demanded that the club be sold. After the likes of Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani entered the running and submitted multiple bids - although not matching the Glazers' £6billion asking price - it appeared that United were closer than ever to changing hands.
Now, though, a fresh report from ESPN claims that brothers Joel and Avram, who front the American family's unpopular regime, are increasingly confident of securing minority investment in the club which would enable them to extend their reign at Old Trafford beyond the 18-year mark.
Having never outright confirmed that they were looking to sell United, the Glazers promised to seek "strategic alternatives," such as auctioning off a minority stake. The absence of a full takeover is something which Neville has worried about throughout the process, telling Sky Sports in March: "The biggest fear of Manchester United fans at this moment in time is that the Glazers are using this process to stay or bring some sort of minority investment in."
The former United captain added: "They have not communicated with United fans for 20 years, so they are not going to do it when they are selling the club. So, there is that element of unknown."
Later that month, Neville described it as a "nightmare scenario" if the Americans were to stay. "I am concerned about the rumours that some of the Glazer family don't want to sell," the ex-Red Devils right-back admitted on The Overlap.
Have your say! Will Man Utd progress under Erik ten Hag if the Glazers stay? Give us your verdict in the comments section.
"One of the rumours we heard about before Christmas was that they were going to stay, and try and find 'strategic investment', which is something FSG [Fenway Sports Group] have mentioned at Liverpool. That means you buy part of the family out, you leave Joel and Avi Glazer in, but Joel and Avi will retain control of the club. That's a nightmare scenario."
Multiple groups such as US hedge fund Elliott Management and investor giant Carlyle have been linked with purchasing a portion of the Glazers' 69 per cent stake in the club. United's current owners could use the outside investment to renovate Old Trafford or build a new stadium, as well as upgrading the Red Devils' training facilities at their Carrington base.
It's safe to say that the vast majority of supporters wouldn't be satisfied until the club was under new ownership, though, with both Ratcliffe and Al Thani holding in-depth talks with United officials during a second round of bidding. The Glazers recently opened up a third stage, with a deadline for offers set for Friday, April 28.
