Keith Harris: Red Knights bid for United ‘pointless’

The hard-fought campaign to rid Manchester United of their American owners has taken another twist today, and it doesn’t make pleasant reading for Man Utd fans.

Keith Harris, head of the Red Knights group and executive chairman of investment bank Seymour Pierce does not believe that a bid for the club would be worthwhile.

Speaking to Sky Sports News, Harris said,

“(If) the owner is not a seller and owns all of it and isn’t under pressure to sell it then there isn’t going to be a deal.

I don’t think there’s any point (in a bid). If you had such a clear message that the current owners don’t want to meet with a prospective buyer then I think you’ve got to say ‘there’s no purpose in tabling a bid’.”

The Glazer family angered fans by crippling the club with massive debts and interest charges during their hostile takeover in 2005. The debt reportedly now stands at over £1bn. Furthermore, the £80m raised by the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid last summer has yet to be reinvested in players, leaving doubts in the minds of many fans whether or not there is actually any money available to strengthen a team which only won the Carling Cup last season.

Downhearted fans were given hope early this year when a group of wealthy businessmen and United fans formed a consortium, labelled the Red Knights. Their plan was to use their contacts to find a number of ‘super-investors’ to raise the funds to buy the club from the Glazer family. Although most of their ‘members’ are not known by name and simply as ‘Red Knights’, Keith Harris insists that all the potential investors are Man Utd fans and have the best interests of the club at heart.

Although the Glazer family have not changed their ‘no sale’ stance, following today’s interview it appears the Red Knights now have.
Back in January when news of the Red Knights group first emerged, Keith Harris said,

“They are probably highly geared in their business activities in America so, if this is an opportunity for them to take the money and go, I would hope they would listen carefully to that offer, providing the money can be raised and I am confident it can be.”

In February, Harris appeared in a bullish mood when he called for United fans to stop spending money on tickets and merchandising.

“I would not talk about this if I didn’t have full confidence in our ability to raise the money to do this. I never talk publicly unless I have confidence. Getting the money together is the easy bit, but we can’t make an offer until the Glazers are placed in a position where they are forced to consider it.”

The fans reacted accordingly with only 50,000 season ticket holders taking the option to renew, causing the club to place 4,000 on general sale for the first time in years, although United chief executive David Gill denies numbers have dropped and said the club were ‘happy’ with the way sales have gone. The well-publicised green and gold campaign became a regular sight at Old Trafford towards the end of last season and were even spotted in South Africa at this summer’s World Cup finals. During the Champions League clash with AC Milan, returning hero David Beckham was seen sporting a green and gold scarf at full-time, although he has since denied knowledge of the campaign.

Things took a turns for the worse in June when the Red Knights announced plans to bid for the club would be put on hold, blaming “inflated valuation aspirations” after the Glazers again released a statement saying they were “still committed to the long-term ownership of the club” and have no plans to sell.

Today’s latest news will surely leave United fans wondering whether they will ever be able to rid the club of owners that don’t want to sell.

Personally, I put the blame at the feet of the millions of fans worldwide who continue to buy replica shirts and other merchandise, and to the rest of the match-going fans that believe that if they give up their seat at Old Trafford then somebody else will happily fill it.
I’m of the opinion that Keith Harris and the Red Knights have the funds available, but unless the money stops rolling in and panics the American owners, then they are just going to find themselves facing a closed door repeatedly. If the fans stop handing the Glazers money, then the value of the club will inevitably fall.

The Glazers may well look to offload their star players and maybe even Old Trafford itself to raise funds before they are forced to sell, which leaves the million dollar question for fans; would you rather Manchester United be successful in the short-term or safe in the long-term?

I know what my answer is.