Man United: Five serious bidders are identified as deadline approaches

Lots of interest is coming from the Middle East

There are up to five 'serious' bidders said to be still in the race to buy Manchester United as the deadline for bids to come in gets closer. The Glazer family announced in November that they would be looking for 'strategic alternatives' for the Red Devils, and were open to either a partial, or full, sale of the club. Five different suitors have put themselves forward so far, the first of those being Sir Jim Ratcliffe. A lifelong United fan, Ratcliffe's company Ineos formally declared their intention to enter the bidding process. Ineos also hold a one-third stake in the Mercedes F1 team and owns Ligue 1 side Nice. Meanwhile the Daily Mail reported earlier this week that Qatari investors were preparing a bid in a matter of days. The Guardian added that the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, is a leading figure behind the proposed plans. However The Athletic have claimed that Qatar are expecting a consortium from Saudi Arabia to come in and rival their bid. In an interview during the World Cup in December, Saudi Arabia's sports minister said that Man United or Liverpool would be two clubs they would be interested in and that he would support any private sector bid if one was to be made. Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal said: "From the private sector, I can't speak on their behalf, but there is a lot of interest and appetite and there's a lot of passion about football.