A billionaire Saudi government official claimed in October last year that Manchester United were at an advanced stage of completing a deal to sell to a new investor

Turki Alalshikh is reportedly interested in Derby County after claiming last year that Manchester United were “at an advanced stage of completing a deal to sell to a new investor”.

Alalshikh, 44, called it “the best news” he heard that day, before adding: “I hope he’s better than the previous owners.” The billionaire clarified a day later: “I am not the investor, nor are they from my nation.

“I’m posting this as a fan who wishes the deal to happen, though it might not necessarily happen.” He described the “potential sale” as an “advanced negotiation phase with a new investor”.

Get MEN Premium now for just £1 HERE – or get involved in our United WhatsApp group by clicking HERE. You can also join our United Facebook page by clicking HERE and don’t miss out on our brilliant selection of newsletters HERE.

The Telegraph now reports that Derby have conducted extensive discussions with Alalshikh about potentially backing the Championship side. However, the publication notes that the extent of the Saudi billionaire’s involvement remains uncertain.

The Independent Football Regulator is said to be conducting due diligence on the Saudi government official before approving any transaction. Alalshikh holds a ministerial position advising the Royal Court and heads the General Entertainment Authority (GEA), which oversees the nation’s entertainment industry.

CEO Today outlined in a profile published last year that his wealth exceeded £2billion as of 2024. However, it seems unlikely that he would assume a comparable position to the one he currently holds at the GEA.

FOLLOW OUR MAN UNITED FB PAGE! Latest news and analysis via the MEN’s Manchester United Facebook page

Clowes is understood to plan to remain Derby chairman under any arrangement, even if he no longer holds a majority shareholding in the club. Alalshikh previously owned Egyptian Premier League club Pyramids and only relinquished Spanish second-tier outfit Almeria last summer after six years at the helm.

Months after that sale, Alalshikh dismissed reports connecting him with Bristol City last September. He said on X: “It is not true that I will buy Bristol City FC.”

Their chief executive, Tom Rawcliffe, however, confirmed weeks later that the club had conversations with Alalshikh. The Robins, like Derby, are receptive to investment as they seek promotion to the Premier League.

Following speculation about a potential interest in the Rams, apparently sparked by supporters noticing that Alalshikh had followed several fan accounts on X, he addressed those rumours on social media. He posted: “Derby,” followed by the person shrugging emoji.

It comes nearly a year after offloading Almeria to a Saudi investment group. The transaction occurred just weeks before he co-founded boxing promotion company Zuffa Boxing alongside UFC chief executive Dana White.

The billionaire’s ties to boxing stretch back almost three years, beginning with Tyson Fury’s bout against Francis Ngannou in Riyadh. Saudi Arabia had already played host to Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight title rematches with both Andy Ruiz Jr and Oleksandr Usyk.

Alalshikh has subsequently arranged several other marquee contests, including the undisputed heavyweight title bout between Fury and Usyk. Now operating through Zuffa, he remains active in staging events throughout the United Kingdom and the United States.

Mason Mount’s Manchester United future is uncertain after a number of injury issues during his Old Trafford career so far, and Michael Carrick’s thoughts on the midfielder are said to be clear

Michael Carrick’s plans for Manchester United midfielder Mason Mount could be clear with the England international facing a big summer.

Carrick’s permanent spell got off to a flying start with a 3-0 win at Brighton & Hove Albion, as the 27-year-old received just his second start since the United great arrived. The Athletic report that the new full-time boss thinks Mount’s positional flexibility will make him an asset to the squad for their quest in four competitions next season.

The former Chelsea man hasn’t managed to hit the heights at Old Trafford since his move from the capital but did strike form under former head coach, Ruben Amorim. But with United qualifying for the Champions League, their calendar next season will be busier and more gruelling, though with Carrick’s hopes for Mount, it poses as a good omen for the 27-year-old.

Get MEN Premium now for just £1 HERE – or get involved in our United WhatsApp group by clicking HERE. You can also join our United Facebook page by clicking HERE and don’t miss out on our brilliant selection of newsletters HERE.

Sunday’s outing was just Mount’s seventh under Carrick as he managed just 200 minutes for the club. Injuries and selection problems meant that Carrick’s focus on steering the club denied the midfielder the chance to continue his first-team involvement.

With the new United boss keen to utilise the 27-year-old, it puts to bed the idea of a summer sale this summer. Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville named the 36-time England international as a player that the club could cash in on to raise funds for the summer following their home win against Liverpool.

“Michael Carrick will be very happy tonight but I think he will also be disappointed deep down that they haven’t gone on to win that game 3-0 or 4-0,” he said on his Sky Sports podcast.

FOLLOW OUR MAN UNITED FB PAGE! Latest news and analysis via the MEN’s Manchester United Facebook page

“They should have killed that game and put Liverpool to sleep because they were nowhere near this football match. He’s won the game and that’s the most important thing but Carrick won’t be fooled by some of what he saw in that second half.

“He will know he needs to rebuild the defence and midfield. If you’re going to play 4-4-2, which I am massively in favour of United doing, you have to have two very special players in there and defenders who can play one-on-one.

“You’re asking a lot of the players. I think United need a left-back for next season because Luke Shaw has played every game this year and he may struggle. They need a centre-back, 100%, and they need two midfield players. They are the four priorities right now. They’re the players I would look at adding to this squad.”

He added: “Look, if you could then maybe trade Mason Mount for someone else who maybe can play in and out and can be a bit more flexible across the midfield and forward line then I would say go for a fifth.

“But if you can’t, I would say those four areas are the priority and they’ve got to be top-notch, those players.”

Up to 70% off Man United kits and merch

This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more

Various Prices

Fanatics

Buy Now on Fanatics

Fanatics has slashed the price of Man United kits and merch with up to 70% off select items.

Rob Kenyon has found himself at the centre of a controversy over his previous use of social media.

A senior Reform MP has said that alleged historic social media posts by the party’s Makerfield candidate were ‘unacceptable’, but were ‘intended as private conversations’.

Plumber and newly-elected Wigan councillor Robert Kenyon is standing in the June 18 by-election. He is seen as the main rival to Labour’s Andy Burnham as he bids to return to Westminster.

Following the announcement he will stand, councillor Kenyon has found himself at the centre of a controversy over his previous use of social media.

Click here for our dedicated Makerfield by-election newsletter with exclusive interviews and analysis

Concerns were first raised after he was announced as the party’s candidate, when it emerged an X account believed to be his had been suspended. Campaign group Hope Not Hate has since reported on a second account on the platform, which has been deleted.

The group claimed Kenyon allegedly made misogynistic posts; a transphobic post; and remarks about Covid conspiracy theories.

Reform UK insists the plumber is the right person to represent Makerfield, with the party suggesting the comments were made before Kenyon entered politics.

Hope Not Hate alleged that on Christmas Eve in 2021, Coun Kenyon responded to an X user who wrote a degrading sexual message about Carol Vorderman.

Join our new Makerfield by-election WhatsApp community by clicking this link for the latest news. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.

After another user criticised the remark, Mr Kenyon is said to have responded ‘he’s only saying what we’re all thinking’ with a thumbs up and laughing emoji.

Ms Vorderman has since hit out at Coun Kenyon in a post Instagram.

On Monday (May 25) East Wiltshire MP Danny Kruger – who heads the party’s ‘preparing for government unit’ – was quizzed on the alleged comment about Ms Vorderman on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

Mr Kruger said it was ‘clearly an inappropriate thing to publicly’, but added: “I’m not going to judge people for what are essentially regarded at the time and intended as private conversations.

“Clearly that’s not the sort of thing you would want an elected politician to make (sic). Quite rightly, clearly, he’s deleted that post and regrets it.”

Asked if he believed Coun Kenyon needed to be removed as the party’s candidate, he said: “No I don’t.”

“It is clearly wrong for politicians to talk in that way,” he added. “He was not a politician at the time. He was an ordinary man, from an ordinary place. And what he has done now is to step forward, outraged at the state of our country and the state of his community.

“I’m not going to defend those comments, but please can you acknowledge there are other concerns at play here. I’m not going to sit here and police the previous remarks, unacceptable as they may be, of people who as private citizens said things they shouldn’t.

“There is a bigger story here. I recognise, I’m not going to diminish the importance of that, but if I may, the real challenge for our country is to get our economy moving, to secure our borders, to give opportunities to young people and to rescue places like Makerfield from an economic model that isn’t working.”

The Manchester Evening News has attempted to contact Coun Kenyon for comment.

A Reform spokesperson previously said: “We fully back Councillor Kenyon. He is an excellent, local candidate who we are confident will be a superb MP for Makerfield. These comments were made before he was in politics.

“Rob isn’t a polished, professional politician and doesn’t speak like one. That’s precisely why he’ll be a straight-talking, effective voice for normal working people in Makerfield.”

Remember Turki Al-Sheikh? The man who once posted a cryptic message on X suggesting Manchester United were in an ‘advanced stage’ of a takeover.

He said: “The best news I heard today is that Manchester United is now in an advanced stage of completing a deal to sell to a new investor. I hope he’s better than the previous owners.”

He later clarified he was not the ‘new investor’, but now he now wants to buy Derby County.

The Times is reporting that the EFL and the Independent Football Regulator are aware of Turki Al-Sheikh’s interest in the Championship club, but both organisations declined to comment when approached by them.

Al-Sheikh is a government minister in Saudi Arabia’s royal court and is the man behind Saudi Arabia’s takeover of boxing.

Drivers are facing bank holiday queues on the M62 following a crash near Saddleworth.

Two lanes of traffic are currently closed on the westbound carriageway through the Pennines, between junctions 24 and 22.

It is affecting drivers heading from Yorkshire to Greater Manchester this morning.

Further details about the incident are yet to be confirmed.

Updates will be posted in this blog when they are available.

Reform say they ‘clamp down’ on any abuse of a proposed £5 billion tax break for workers doing extra hours, Robert Jenrick has said.

The ‘hard work bonus’ would create a tax-free allowance for overtime above a 40-hour week for workers earning less than £75,000.

Reform has aimed the plan at attracting more voters in Labour’s former industrial heartlands as it seeks to prevent Andy Burnham winning the Makerfield by-election.

Responding to the suggestion that employers could decide to pay workers’ first 40 hours at minimum wage and then pay overtime at an exorbitant rate, Mr Jenrick told Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips yesterday:

“We don’t think that’s what’s going to happen. There will be anti-avoidance measures in place.”

The Reform Treasury spokesman added: “We’ve allocated £5 billion to this and that includes an apportionment for some reclassification of unpaid overtime to paid overtime, so we expect there will be some changes within the labour market, but if there is gaming of this, if there’s abuse, then obviously we’ll clamp down on that and we’ll work with HMRC and the Treasury when we enter government to make sure that we get that right.”

Drivers are facing long delays on two Lancashire motorways this morning following an ‘obstruction’ on the M6.

The road is partially blocked on the northbound carriageway between junctions 30 and 31, near Preston.

It is affecting drivers on both the M6 and M61, heading north from Greater Manchester, towards popular bank holiday getaway destinations Blackpool and the Lake District.

Drivers heading north on the M6 are facing queues from junction 28, at Leyland.

On the M61, there are delays tailing back to junction eight at Chorley.

Hello and welcome to the League Two play-off final live blog as Salford City look to make history. The Ammies head down to Wembley to face Notts County looking to reach the third tier for the first time ever. It will be a monumental achievement for a club that has dominated the spotlight thanks to their Class of ’92 ownership.

Salford head into the game on the pitch as favourites but will be outnumbered by Notts fans at Wembley. City have sold a fraction of the tickets of their opponents but that may play in their favour. Notts supporters already feel they have one foot in League One. Salford will be hoping they can show that promotion is won on the pitch, rather than in the stands.

Stay tuned for live updates…

Reform say they ‘clamp down’ on any abuse of a proposed £5 billion tax break for workers doing extra hours, Robert Jenrick has said.

The ‘hard work bonus’ would create a tax-free allowance for overtime above a 40-hour week for workers earning less than £75,000.

Reform has aimed the plan at attracting more voters in Labour’s former industrial heartlands as it seeks to prevent Andy Burnham winning the Makerfield by-election.

Responding to the suggestion that employers could decide to pay workers’ first 40 hours at minimum wage and then pay overtime at an exorbitant rate, Mr Jenrick told Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips yesterday:

“We don’t think that’s what’s going to happen. There will be anti-avoidance measures in place.”

The Reform Treasury spokesman added: “We’ve allocated £5 billion to this and that includes an apportionment for some reclassification of unpaid overtime to paid overtime, so we expect there will be some changes within the labour market, but if there is gaming of this, if there’s abuse, then obviously we’ll clamp down on that and we’ll work with HMRC and the Treasury when we enter government to make sure that we get that right.”