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News of discontent within the OGC Nice camp may cast some shadows over Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s potential purchase of Manchester United.
According to RMC Sport, some fans and other figures view Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his company, INEOS, as being overly preoccupied with the acquisition of Man United.
Sir Ratcliffe has become something of a prolific sports investor, pumping hundreds of millions of pounds into ventures across sporting fields like cycling, sailing, Formula One, and recently, several football clubs.
Unfortunately, these investments have borne mixed results, especially in the football world, where his two biggest investments to date, Lausanne Sport of Switzerland, and Nice, have not lived up to expectations.
When Sir Jim bought Nice in 2019, he immediately proclaimed his ambitious plans. The target was to ensure that Nice would become a regular participant in European competitions. That meant, at the time, competing in either the Champions League or the Europa League.
In his words, “With a reasonable and measured investment, we want to make OGC Nice a club capable of regularly participating in European competitions. And above all capable of performing there.”
The investment has been forthcoming, as The Athletic reports, with over € 100 million spent on transfers from 2019 to date. But as Man United fans will know all too well, throwing money at a football club doesn’t always equal success.
Despite Sir Jim’s willingness to invest, Nice has arguably regressed under his stewardship, owing largely to organizational upheavals that have seen departures and new arrivals in the positions of CEO, director of football and manager.
In the six years prior to his takeover, the club managed a Ligue 1 top-four finish on three occasions. Since the takeover, its highest finish has been fifth place.
Concerns are now being compounded by the fact that Sir Ratcliffe is viewed as being the likely buyer to be favoured by the Glazer family, in their bid to sell some or all of their holdings in Man United.
If the deal goes through, Sir Jim will likely part ways with over £5 billion, making United his largest sporting investment by far.
From the perspective of Nice fans and stakeholders who have already been scratching their heads in trying to figure out their club’s direction, there is a sense that their concerns are not being treated with the same level of urgency INEOS attaches to the acquisition of Man United.
But while those in Nice may fret over potential neglect, their Man United counterparts will wonder if, despite his best intentions – and attention, Sir Ratcliffe is really best suited for the task of restoring United to the top of the English game.
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Courtesy : https://thepeoplesperson.com/2023/05/26/red-flags-for-man-united-as-ogc-nice-fans-lose-patience-with-sir-jim-ratcliffe-264497/