Tottenham Hotspur parted ways with chairman Daniel Levy this week leading to speculation surrounding the future of the Premier League club
Manchester United supporters' hopes of Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al-Thani taking full control of the club could have been handed a blow following the news coming out of Tottenham Hotspur this week.
Spurs recently announced that their chairman of 25 years Daniel Levy had left the club. The news came as a shock to the football world considering the billionaire's keen affection towards the north London club and his previous denial that he would walk away.
Reports have suggested that Levy was moved on by the owners the ENIC Group as they look to take Spurs to the next level. While in their statement announcing the chairman's exit Tottenham insisted that this decision would not lead to a takeover, speculation is rife that the owners will sell sooner rather than later.
Newcastle's former owner Amanda Staveley has held previous interest in investing in Spurs and so has Sheikh Jassim. The Qatari banker was one of the frontrunners to purchase United when the Glazers opened themselves up to offers.
Sheikh Jassim's plan was for a full takeover but it soon became clear that the Glazers wanted to sell a minority stake in the club. While this was not something the Sheikh wanted to entertain, Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos agreed leading to the structure of the club that we see today.
Soon afterwards, the banker was linked with a move to Spurs after inklings that an opportunity could arise to purchase them. However, there is still a long way to go before that deal could be done.
Ratcliffe and Ineos appear committed to the long-term project at United and, as such, Sheikh Jassim may feel that moving for Tottenham is a quicker way of getting into the elite Premier League group. Levy's exit throws a twist to the saga as clearly Spurs are going through a period of transition in the boardroom.
Whether this makes a full takeover in the short-term more or less likely remains to be seen. But as things stand, there is more chance of Sheikh Jassim purchasing Spurs than the Reds.
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