Manchester United is to be the subject of a Qatar-based ownership bid within the coming days.
That's according to the Mail, who says that United could be the next Premier League club to be taken over by Middle Eastern buyers, following Manchester City and Newcastle United, owned by UAE and Saudi Arabian groups, respectively.
There could be plans, too, to give Erik ten Hag a huge transfer budget to reshape the Red Devils as he sees fit.
According to the report, "high-wealth individuals based in the oil-rich state, buoyed by Qatar’s hosting of the World Cup, have set their sights on a club they view as ‘football’s crown jewels’."
United are one of the highest-profile clubs in the world, of course, and the most successful Premier League side ever with 13 titles in the modern era.
Qatar's monarch Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani is apparently a big United fan – and with current owners, the Glazer family, setting a deadline for bids somewhere in the middle of February, there is hope that a bid for the club could be made swiftly.
The report states, too, that the investors interested in purchasing Manchester United are a different group from those who own Paris Saint-German, Qatari Sports Investments.
Along with a Qatari-based bid, United are expecting interest from Sir Jim Ratcliffe, owner of Ligue 1 side Nice and long-standing United supporter.
UFC star Conor McGregor has also touted potentially buying the Old Trafford outfit.
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Formal bids are set to be submitted to buy United. The club had a quiet January window but brought in Marcel Sabitzer on deadline day after Christian Eriksen picked up a long-term injury.
Former United chairman Martin Edwards, meanwhile, has spoken to FFT about how the club's 1991 European Cup Winners' Cup victory helped changed the perception of English football across the continent.
