Manchester United have reportedly hired legal help after being told they could not sign a defensive target
Manchester United minority owner Jim Ratcliffe(Image credit: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Manchester United look to be digging their heels in after seeing UEFA block a key summer transfer deal.
After confirming earlier this month that Erik ten Hag will be remaining as manager, the Red Devils are getting to work on what is set to be a busy summer in the transfer market in response to last season’s eighth-place Premier League finish.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his Ineos team are in place for their first transfer window running the club’s football operations following the billionaire’s competition of his minority purchase at Old Trafford earlier this season.
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After the team shipped in 58 goals last season, a new central defender is a priority for the club this summer, which led to the team being linked with a move for Nice’s France international Jean-Clair Todibo.
However, the club hit a stumbling block in their pursuit of the 24-year-old, due to Ratcliffe’s ownership of Nice via his Ineos company. Shortly after reports emerged that UEFA had blocked a transfer for the centre-back, Ratcliffe went on the record to say that he had been prevented from signing an unnamed player.
"They've said we can sell him to another Premiership club, but we can't sell to Manchester United," he told Bloomberg. "But that's not fair on the player and I don't see what that achieves."
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Now, it would appear that Ratcliffe will not take no for an answer, as journalist Sacha Tavolieri reports that the club have hired Swiss lawyer Gianpaolo Monteneri to fight their case with the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
This comes after UEFA granted Manchester United and Nice permission to both play in the Europa League this season, despite current rules stating that no clubs that share ownership can play in the same competition. The association has instructed Nice to operate via a ‘blind trust’, but this is one a one-season solution.
This again highlights the case of Ratcliffe’s involvement in both clubs, amid recent reports he could be ready to sell his shares in Nice.
For more than a decade Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor, with stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others. He is the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team.
