UNCERTAINTY over the ownership of Manchester United is restricting the club's preparations for next season, likely to be among the most demanding in their history. As United seek to take their place among the European superpowers in an enlarged Champions' League tournament, their plans to strengthen the squad are on hold, pending government decisions on the takeover bid by British Sky Broadcasting.
A ruling on the £623m bid, which has been fiercely resisted by supporters' groups and media organisations, is expected from the Department of Trade and Industry in three weeks' time, after Stephen Byers, the Secretary of State, has studied a Monopolies and Mergers Commission (MMC) report on the deal. For United manager Alex Ferguson, a judgment, either way, cannot come soon enough. Having guided his team to the semi-finals of this year's principal European competition, and kept them in sight of a unique Champions' League, Premiership and FA Cup treble, he anticipates a summer transfer market in which Europe's leading clubs chase ever-stronger squads ahead of a campaign that will make huge demands on stamina and offer unprecedented rewards for success.
"You're going to have to have some range of players next year," Ferguson said. "The Champions' League next season is going to be different, and more difficult, whether we like it or not. It could take 17 matches to get to the final. Most European clubs will be assessing that at the moment, seeing how many players they are going to need. We certainly have got to think about it.
"The problem is that we don't know who owns the club at the moment. Once we know where we stand, we can get down to assessing what funds we have and if, and how, we can add to the squad. Nobody knows what's going to happen with BSkyB. That's not the problem, it's just a matter of the timing: you don't know where you stand. We should know in three weeks about the BSkyB thing."
The MMC completed its findings 10 days ago. Press reports on Wednesday said the commission had ruled the takeover of United by BSkyB, the satellite television station in which News Corporation has a 40% stake, was against the public interest. Many of the arguments against the deal surround the possibility that the club could give information on rival bids for television rights to BSkyB, and that a marriage of the dominant sports broadcaster and England's wealthiest club was anti-competitive. The Manchester United Independent Supporters' Association argued against the takeover.
Ferguson insists that the club's 1998-99 ambitions are not suffering from the distractions of the boardroom, and the midweek success against Internazionale in the European Cup quarter-final suggests as much. "It doesn't stop the ship from carrying on," he said. "It's just a question of timing. The gratifying thing is that the team are looking very strong, and the motivation is there."
Yet a number of issues, including Ferguson's future, are on United's immediate agenda. A few hours after the 1-1 draw in Milan, the club chairman, Martin Edwards, invited reporters to an audience in which he apparently committed the board to their manager for several seasons to come. "We have no problem with Alex being here as long as he wants," said Edwards, who expects Ferguson to sign an improved contract in the summer.
Among the playing staff, uncertainty surrounds the future of captain Roy Keane, who will also enter negotiations with the chairman; and the reserve midfield player Jordi Cruyff, who is on loan at Celta Vigo in Spain and may not return to Old Trafford. Assuming United qualify for next season's Champions' League - either as holders of the title or by finishing in the top three of the Premiership - Ferguson believes they will need two or three high-quality new recruits. One will replace Peter Schmeichel in goal; the Dutch international goalkeeper, Edwin van der Saar, is among the favourites and attended Wednesday's game as a guest of United defender Jaap Stam.
"We've got a good squad at the moment," Ferguson said. "We've got 24 good first-team players. We may have Cruyff back, we don't know that yet. What's been encouraging is that the younger players, the likes of Jonathan Greening, who is 20, and Wes Brown, 19, are going to be better. They're already good players. Young Mark Wilson, 20, is also going to be a good player. And it was a relatively youngish side out there on Wednesday: David Beckham [23], the Nevilles [24 and 22], Ryan Giggs [25]."
The first months of the 1999-2000 season will provide opportunities for all of them. In addition to fixtures in the Premiership, League and FA Cups, the first round proper of the Champions' League will include 32 clubs playing in eight groups of four. The teams finishing first and second in each group then enter one of four groups of four, from which they must again finish in the top two to reach the quarter-finals. "It's going to be a delicate balancing act next year," Ferguson said. "It's difficult to know how many games we're going to be playing next season. It's going to mean at least 12 European games up until January."
In the meantime, United meet Everton at home today, followed by a break for international duty and then a period of six games in 22 days, including the two European semi-final matches against Juventus and the FA Cup semi-final with Arsenal at Villa Park. Should that go to a replay, expect frantic talks between the clubs, FA and Birmingham police about where on earth they can fit it into the calendar.
