Man Utd to open books to Glazer

Manchester United's board has agreed to give US tycoon Malcolm Glazer access to its books.

Earlier this month, Mr Glazer presented the board with detailed proposals on an offer to buy the football club. In a statement, the club said it would allow Mr Glazer "limited due diligence" to give him the opportunity to take the proposal on to a formal bid. But it said it continued to oppose Mr Glazer's plans, calling his assumptions "aggressive" and his plan "damaging". Many of Manchester United's supporters own shares in the club, and the fan-based group Shareholders United is strongly opposed to any takeover by Mr Glazer. About 300 fans protested outside the Old Trafford ground two days ago.

Rival local club Manchester City has pleaded with visiting fans not to protest inside its ground when the two teams play a televised match on Sunday.

Manchester United's response comes as little surprise, as the board made clear. "Any board has a responsibility to consider a bona fide offer proposal," the club said in its statement. Should it become a firm offer, it should be at a price that "the board is likely to regard as fair" and on terms which "may be deliverable". But it also stressed that it stayed opposed to Mr Glazer's proposal. "The board continues to believe that Mr Glazer's business plan assumptions are aggressive," the statement said, "and the direct and indirect financial strain on the business could be damaging." Whether or not the bid is attractive in monetary terms, in the case of Manchester United many investors hold the stock for sentimental rather than financial reasons. At present, Mr Glazer and his family hold a 28.1% stake, making them Manchester United's second biggest shareholders. They own the successful Tampa Bay Buccaneers American football team based in Florida. If the family makes a formal offer, they will need the support of the club's biggest shareholders.

Irish horse racing millionaires JP McManus and John Magnier own 29% of United through their investment vehicle Cubic Expression, and have yet to express a view on the bid approach.

A group of five MPs are calling on the Department of Trade and Industry to block any takeover of the club by the US football magnate on public interest grounds. They have signed a House of Commons motion, and Tony Lloyd, the Manchester Central MP, whose constituency includes the club's Old Trafford ground, has pledged to take the matter "to Tony Blair if necessary". The Commons motion says "any takeover designed to transform the club into a private company would be against the interests of those supporters and football". However, the DTI has dismissed the proposal. A spokesman said the department did not believe there was a case for changing the Enterprise Act so that takeovers of football clubs could be looked at on non-competition grounds. Mr Glazer's offer values the club at £800m ($1.5bn). Pitched at 300p per share, it also relies less on debt to finance it than an earlier approach from the US tycoon, which was rejected out of hand. Manchester United shares closed at 270.25p on Friday, down 3.75p on the day.
