Prospective Manchester United owner Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al Thani may consider tabling a bid for West Ham if his attempt to buy the Red Devils ends in failure, according to reports.
The Hammers are classed as a legitimate option due to their location and their strong supporter base. Fans on Twitter are, however, split on whether the interest from the Qataris is serious:
It it means keeping Rice then hell yeah …..
— DICANIO10 (@Lord_Irons) May 21, 2023
Lol as if. Unless we buy the stadium nobody is buying.
— Anna Caswell-Thorp ⚒️ (@AUCasanna) May 21, 2023
Do it please
— Hussey (@WHU_RHS) May 21, 2023
No thanks. Would happily have Sir Jim Ratcliffe though.
— WHUGREG🇮🇪⚒️☦ #SBOUT (@whugreg) May 21, 2023
hmmmm as long he didnt interrupted the management, im okay with that..💸💸💸
— HUMAM (@shadowshauman) May 21, 2023
Never going to happen.
— Jamie Moore⚒ (@JamieMoore76) May 21, 2023
I beg🙏🏻🙏🏻
— Darot savu māti (@MatiSavu) May 21, 2023
….. highly unlikely…. We have no ground! We are only a brand
— Steve Davis (@RUsureIsaidthat) May 21, 2023
From the sound of things, the Qataris are trying to scare Manchester United’s owners by threatening to pull out of the bidding process.
They have now made four bids for the 20-time champions of England, with little in the way of progress being made.
In terms of West Ham being a realistic alternative, a lot would depend on David Sullivan and, especially Daniel Kretinsky, who has only made his investment in the club relatively recently.
If Sheikh Jassim were to offer a figure which is much higher than the Irons are worth, they could consider a sale, but it isn’t something that supporters should treat as a genuine possibility at this stage.