Sky Sports reporter Kaveh Solhekol has explained why Manchester United's high debt levels may indicate why the Glazers are willing to sell the club right now.
What's going on with Man United's ownership?
Bids have been launched to try and acquire ownership of the club from the Glazers, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani's groups thought to be the frontrunners.
United's debt levels were revealed, with a rise to £535.7m, and this may indicate why the Glazers are willing to sell now.
With rising debt and rising costs as Old Trafford is in need of refurbishment, a sale now makes a lot of sense for the American owners, according to Solhekol.
Speaking on Sky Sports News, Solhekol explained why there is such a high level of debt.
He said: "If you dig into the accounts, you will see that Manchester United's debt is up, to £535m. Now, they say that is largely due to the weak pound, but you have to remember that the reason Manchester United have a debt of £535m now is because when the Glazer family bought the club 18 years ago, they bought the club in a leveraged buyout and they loaded £550m of debt onto the club.
"And 18 years later, it still stands at £535m. United were a debt-free club before the Glazers arrived.
"The wage bill for the quarter actually was down 21% – a decrease of £20.4m. A lot of people wondering if that has anything to do with the fact that Cristiano Ronaldo left the club during that period.
"United say that decrease is down to squad turnover, and also not being in the Champions League, because a lot of their players get paid more when they are in the Champions League – so a mixed picture.
"Just looking into these figures gives you an idea of perhaps why the Glazer family think now is the right time to sell Manchester United, especially if they can get the £6bn that they want for the club."
Do the Glazers need to sell now?
There has been a lot of anger directed towards the Glazers from United fans, as the rising debt and lack of successful investment into the playing squad has meant they are set to go ten years without a Premier League title.
There has been particular scrutiny of their lack of investment in the infrastructure, especially since Cristiano Ronaldo highlighted the problems at United prior to his departure.
The current financial situation means that now probably is the best time for the Glazers to make an exit, which could see them make a huge profit on their initial investment whilst also avoiding any future costs of redeveloping the stadium, which their successors can take on instead.
Sheikh Jassim has already promised heavy investment into club infrastructure – as well as a debt-free takeover – should his Qatari consortium successfully purchase the club, so his bid may well appear to the outgoing owners.
