06 October 2023 , 09:35
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Zlatan Ibrahimovic believes some Manchester United fans are "wrong" for criticising the Glazers as uncertainty continues to grow over the club's ownership.
In November 2022, the Glazers put United 'up for sale' following fan pressure from the Red Devils faithful. Since then, Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamal Al Thani have emerged as the two main frontrunners, while other investment firms have also registered an interest.
But, at the end of last month, it was reported that Ratcliffe is ready to restructure his offer to buy the club, having put forward a proposal earlier this year to buy 69 percent of shares. Now, Ratcliffe is prepared to submit a sixth bid to the Glazers, who would remain as minority shareholders as part of the proposal.
Many United fans want to see the Glazers leave as soon as possible, though Ibrahimovic doesn't know why. The 42-year-old, who retired from professional football in June, defended the Glazers and cited the scale of money they have put into the club since taking over in 2005.
"I think now in Man Utd, I don't know, there are some kind of demonstrations about the owners to sell it and that, but just a reminder, the owners are investing," he told Piers Morgan Uncensored.
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"It is not like they are not investing because they brought in many players for a high amount of money. So I think it's a little bit wrong saying that they are not doing what the fans expect them to do, then I don't know what the real reason is behind everything."
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Zlatan Ibrahimovic retired from football in June (Getty Images)In the last five years, United rank second out of Premier League clubs for net spend (£608.9m), with only Chelsea having a bigger total during that time. Antony and Harry Maguire rank as the most expensive arrivals in that time, while Jadon Sancho and Casemiro also cost more than £50m each.
Ibrahimovic joined United on a free transfer in 2016 and instantly became a hero, scoring the winner on his debut in the Community Shield against Leicester. The Swede scored 28 times in his debut campaign at Old Trafford, winning the Carabao Cup and Europa League in the process.
But the ex-Barcelona forward would end up leaving the club by mutual consent in March 2018, with Ibrahimovic joining MLS side LA Galaxy. Reflecting on his time in Manchester, Ibrahimovic was quizzed about Cristiano Ronaldo's claim that some younger players at the club showed him a lack of respect.
"Respect is not something you ask for, respect is something you take," Ibrahimovic added. "So it depends on you. I have to make sure you respect me. You don't ask the young guys for respect, you take their respect and put them in their place.
"The situation, they earn much more money, yes, for doing so little compared to before. Now, the new generation fly very fast without even walking, so walking is performing for me. It's up to him [Ronaldo] to make sure they respect him.
"If that was me and they didn't respect me, that young player, it's the last thing he'd have in his life because I would make sure he respects me and he'd know it for the remainder of his life."