Man United news: Surprise Jim Ratcliffe plan ‘considered’ which could see Cristiano Ronaldo reunite with Red Devils after £85m blow

Manchester United are reportedly exploring the possibility of playing a mid-season friendly in Saudi Arabia in their latest bid to raise money.

Following a disastrous 2024-25 campaign which culminated with a defeat in the Europa League final and a 15th-placed finish in the Premier League, Ruben Amorim’s squad flew out to Asia to take part in two post-season friendlies.

The Red Devils fell to a 1-0 defeat against ASEAN All-Stars in Malaysia, just three days after beating Aston Villa 2-0 on the final day of the 2024-25 Premier League season, before heading into the summer break with a 3-1 success over Hong Kong XI.

Since then, Amorim has come under intense pressure following a disappointing start to the new campaign, winning just two of his opening six Premier league fixtures and crashing out in the EFL Cup second round at the hands of fourth-tier outfit Grimsby Town.

From a financial perspective alone, Man United are paying the price for failing to qualify for European competition, with The Athletic reporting that the Red Devils have missed out on up to £85m without Champions League football.

The same report adds that the decision to scrap an access-all-areas documentary also curtailed what could have been a valuable source of income, and minority shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who is in charge of all football operations at Man United, is now exploring ways to generate funds in the coming months.

Man United vs. Ronaldo mid-season battle in Saudi Arabia ‘considered’

It is claimed that talks with relevant stakeholders are at an early stage over the possibility of Man United playing a mid-season friendly in Saudi Arabia.

Without European football, Man United have several free midweeks in their schedule and travelling to the Middle East is considered as an option to boost their revenue.

A visit to Saudi Arabia could see five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo - who now plies his trade with Saudi Pro League giants Al-Nassr - reunite with Man United for the first time since leaving Old Trafford in 2022.

Man United’s chief business officer Marc Armstrong, who was appointed in February, has experience of staging similar opportunities, with his former club Paris Saint-Germain facing a Saudi Pro League XI in Riyadh - which included Ronaldo - in January 2023.

While the prospect of Man United coming up against Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr side would hold appeal, it is unclear whether the current schedules would allow.

Ratcliffe exploring ways to generate funds and reduce Man Utd debt

The Red Devils are said to be looking into potential dates and opponents, but they will need to adhere to Premier League rules on mid-season friendlies, which includes not scheduling any non-competitive games until league fixture dates have been fixed, subject to TV rights.

Man United are no strangers to making trips outside the UK several times each season, doing so on eight occasions in the previous campaign.

The club’s desperation to raise funds comes at a time when their debt stands at around £750m, with Ratcliffe claiming earlier this year that the Red Devils were in danger of “going bust by Christmas” of 2024 had they not carried out a plethora of cost-cutting measures, including up to 450 redundancies.

Man United did recently post record annual revenues of £666.5m for 2024-25, but also a sixth successive loss, down from £113.2m in the previous financial year.