Ferguson may be on a winner

Jamie Reid examines the conspiracy theory that has an Irish syndicate led by JP McManus and John Magnier taking over at Manchester United.

The fog has lifted, the mystery has been solved, but the speculation will not go away. Manchester United may no longer be looking for a manager, but the news of Alex Ferguson's contract extension has merely added fuel to another burning Old Trafford question, the answer to which is even more crucial to the future of the world's richest club.

Ever since the gambler and currency speculator JP McManus and his billionaire pal John Magnier raised their United shareholding to 8.6 per cent last July, fans and City analysts alike have expected a takeover bid from these two Irish mavericks, the club's second largest shareholders after BSkyB.

Through their shared interest in horse racing, McManus and Magnier are very good friends with Ferguson, so his decision to stay on has inevitably been seen as another sign of an impending Irish takeover from the current United board, with whom Ferguson has a frosty relationship.

United had hoped to have everything finalised on Thursday and to have announced the news at an Old Trafford press conference.

However United were forced to revise their timetable after the paperwork and the lawyers took longer than expected. Despite this minor delay, the talks remain on track and there has been no hitch over the length or terms of the contract.

The final details of Ferguson's new contract are expected to be agreed over the weekend, and the club are then expected to hold a press conference early next week.

The deal will make Ferguson (60), the best-paid manager in the Premiership. It has been reported he could pocket as much as £3.6 million a year, or £70,000 a week, under the terms of his new deal.

Away from the public spotlight, the relationship between McManus and Ferguson seems to deepen by the week. The United manager has made several visits to Hamilton Place, just behind the Inn On The Park. "Les A", as it is known to devotees, is a favourite haunt of high-rolling racing figures including McManus and Magnier, and has been the setting for numerous big-race celebrations.

Ferguson, too, will be at Cheltenham next month for the Gold Cup, a guest of his friend Mike Dillon of Ladbrokes in a corporate box just along the corridor from McManus's.

The racing community remains fascinated by Ferguson's embrace of the Turf and by his choice of company.

Unlike others who have squandered their earnings on horses, the United manager is a part owner of such top-class thoroughbreds as Rock Of Gibraltar. The fellow owners of this 2,000 Guineas candidate just happen to be John Magnier and his wife, Sue.

Whether this tangled web all ends in a United takeover bid is, as yet, probably undecided. The Irish contingent are content to take a long-term view, although they are, in the meantime, thought to be deploying other proxy bidders to make smaller, low-key United share acquisitions when the opportunities arise.

In this respect Ferguson's successful negotiation of a new contract surely suits their long-term strategy. The suspicion remains that they would one day like to make Ferguson chairman, with Celtic's Martin O'Neill, who has worked closely with Dermot Desmond in the latter's capacity as Celtic chairman, their preferred choice to be the next manager. By the summer of 2003, O'Neill will be out of contract at Celtic and another year wiser in terms of European competition. But the options available to Ferguson and his racing backers would not end there.

The Roma boss, Fabio Capello, would also be free next year, and maybe even England's coach Sven-Goran Eriksson too.

These three all seem to be more popular with the United king-makers than Leeds United's David O'Leary, whose on- and off-the-pitch reversals in recent months have apparently sent his candidature into a tail-spin.

McManus is certainly familiar with the concept of a stake horse - or "putters-on", as they're known in the betting world. As evidence, take Janidou, the little-known McManus racehorse that finished third in the Pierse Hurdle at Leopardstown on January 13th. The six-year-old was returned at odds of 7 to 1, but that was only half the story.

McManus and friends had backed Janidou each way at 50 to 1 12 months before. The gamble had been spread around in a series of small wagers, placed by individuals acting on McManus's behalf. When Janidou finished in the frame, the total winnings are said to have been well in to six figures.

Not that McManus needs the money. "He's getting like the Queen," says his life-long friend Des Fitzgerald, the first man to go into the bookmaking business with him. "He doesn't carry cash any more. It's his sidekicks who pay for things. There's always somebody else who puts the bets on."

Which is one tip the Manchester United board may do well to remember.