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7 months ago
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Former Manchester United bidder Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani has reportedly complained about 'demonstrably false statements' made by former takeover rival Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
Ratcliffe completed a purchase of a 27.7 per cent stake in Man United in February after defeating Qatari businessman Sheikh Jassim in a takeover battle.
Jassim, who wanted to stage a full takeover of the club, withdraw from the process last October with his offer falling short of the £6bn figure the Glazer family were thought to want to sell the club.
In an interview after buying a minority stake in Man United, Ratcliffe questioned the existence of his rival.
'Still nobody's ever seen him, actually,' he said. 'The Glazers never met him... he never... I'm not sure he exists!'
Sheikh Jassim has reportedly complained about 'demonstrably false statements' by his former Manchester United takeover rival Sir Jim Ratcliffe
Ratcliffe appeared to question the funding of Sheikh Jassim's bid and had joked he was not sure the Qatari businessman existed
Ratcliffe had also appeared to suggest the bid led by Sheikh Jassim had failed to provide proof of funds.
According to the Athletic, legal representatives of Sheikh Jassim and his investment vehicle, called the Nine Two Foundation, have now complained about Ratcliffe's comments.
The Qatari bid has reportedly suggested Ratcliffe had breached a confidentiality agreement reached in the takeover process, calling for an end to 'a pattern of demonstrably false and defamatory statements'.
The complaint also included a request for 'immediate corrective action' to Man United's filings to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Man United reportedly declined to comment on Sheikh Jassim's complaint and have not amended the filing to the SEC.
Mail Sport reported in January that the Qatari bid had been left furious United claimed to shareholders that their group did not hit the valuation set by owners the Glazers or show evidence as to where the finance was coming from.
In a number of filings to shareholders, United disclosed that the Qatar bid did not meet an asking price of around £4.5bn, excluding the existing debt, for the club and said that despite repeated requests no proof of funding was handed over.
However, sources close to the bid were adamant that they offered around £4.5bn - slightly below Ratcliffe's accepted bid but with all debt being paid off - and provided proof of funding throughout.
United's filing said that 'Bidder A' repeatedly failed to submit 'customary financing commitment letters'.
This information was countered by saying that among various pieces of financial information handed over by Sheikh Jassim's team was a separate bank guarantee from the chief executive of Qatar National Bank, which is viewed as the largest financial institution in the Middle East and Africa.
Sheikh Jassim's bid had rebuffed Man United's claims the their group did not hit the valuation set by owners the Glazers or show evidence as to where the finance was coming from
The Qatari bid were also frustrated that shareholders were not told of Sheikh Jassim's promise to provide an immediate infrastructure injection of around £1bn ($1.3bn).
In October, the Sheikh Jassim group withdrew from the process, leaving Ratcliffe as the only serious contender.
The documents say a final bid from the Qatari camp of around £4bn was rejected, however those involved insist that is inaccurate and that the final figure was much higher.
Sheikh Jassim pledged to invest around £1bn on either redeveloping Old Trafford or building a new stadium, along with transforming United's training facility.
He pulled the plug after nine months of the saga last October after seeing a final offer rejected by the club.
His opened the door for Ratcliffe to complete the deal for a 27.7 per cent stake in the club on Christmas Eve, with the deal then ratified by the Premier League in February.
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