"We can't sit around hoping that one day Manchester United will become available" - Sir Jim Ratcliffe says Glazers don't want to sell Premier League giants

British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe has explained that the Glazer family do not want to sell Manchester United, as per ESPN.

There has been speculation that Ratcliffe could be set to launch a takeover bid for United as fans continue to protest against the Glazers' ownership.

The chairman of chemical company INEOS had bid for Chelsea earlier this year when their former owner Roman Abramovich put the club up for sale.

Ratcliffe is Britain's richest man with a reported worth of £9.8 million and has said that he is still in the market for a top Premier League club.

However, he is not willing to wait around for Manchester United to become available and has revealed talks have been had with the Glazers.

Ratcliffe has now explained to the Financial Times that the Glazers' stance over the potential sale of the Red Devils, staying that they do not wish to do so:

"Manchester United is owned by the Glazer family, whom I have met. I've met Joel [Glazer] and Avram [Glazer] and they are the nicest people, I have to say."

He continued,

"They are proper gentlemen, really nice people, and they don't want to sell it. It's owned by the six children of the father and they don't want to sell it."

Ratcliffe then said that he would have made a move for the club if it had become available this summer:

"If it had been for sale in the summer, yes, we would have probably had a go following on from the Chelsea thing but we can't sit around hoping that one day Manchester United will become available."

It comes as a setback for United fans who are eager for the Glazers to sell the club due to what they perceive as poor ownership.

The American business family loaded their own debt worth around £550 million onto the club when they became owners back in 2005.

Since then, the initial debt has ballooned over the years and peaked at more than £700 million in 2010, per the Independent.

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Manchester United fans stuck with the Glazers

Protests can expect to continue from the Old Trafford faithful

Manchester United supporters have made it well known that they want the Glazers gone.

Protests have been held at Old Trafford on numerous occasions, while fans can be heard chanting negative songs about the American owners on matchday regularly.

However, Ratcliffe has now seemingly pulled away from the possibility of launching a takeover bid, and with that, fans know that the Glazers intend on going nowhere.

Under their ownership, United have faltered over the years, dropping outside the top four of the Premier League.

They have also won just three major honors since Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement in 2013 with much of the blame being cast on the Glazer's supposed poor handling of the club.