Avram Glazer and Joel Glazer.

Manchester United has been owned by the Glazer family for the past 17 years; however, they recently made public their intention to explore "alternative strategies" for investment, which may result in the sale of the club. The news has caused fans all over the world to celebrate, as it appears that the tumultuous relationship that has existed between them and the American owners may finally be coming to an end.

The club said the following in a statement that was published on United's official website: "As a part of this process, the Board of Directors will think about all of the possible strategic options, such as making a new investment into the club, selling it, or engaging in some other kind of transaction involving the Company.

"This will include an assessment of several initiatives to strengthen the club, including stadium and infrastructure redevelopment, and expansion of the club's commercial operations on a global scale. Each of these initiatives will be evaluated within the context of enhancing the long-term success of the club's men's, women's, and academy teams, as well as bringing benefits to fans and other stakeholders."

After this, Executive Co-Chairmen and Directors Avram Glazer and Joel Glazer made the following statement: "The dedication and commitment shown by Manchester United's global community of 1.1 billion fans and followers is the engine that drives the success of the club. In light of the fact that we want to continue building on the Club's history of success, the Board of Directors has given their approval for an in-depth analysis of the various strategic options.

"We will investigate every possibility to guarantee that we provide the highest level of service to our supporters and that Manchester United makes the most of the significant expansion possibilities that are open to the club both now and in the future. Throughout the entirety of this procedure, we will keep our undivided attention on serving what is in the best interests of our fans, shareholders, and other various stakeholders."

The problem is that a significant amount of damage has already been done, and any new owners will be responsible for repairing it. This is the case regardless of who buys United.

Off the field, Manchester United used to be one of the top clubs in the money league maintained by Deloitte, and they were second only to Real Madrid in this league among football-based clubs. Now, the club is in fifth place, behind teams like Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Madrid, and Barcelona, with Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool following closely behind them.

The Glazers have allowed United to fall behind and regress after getting off to a massive headstart, which has resulted in the brand not being as appealing as it once was. And then we move on to the issues that have arisen out on the field.

United has not triumphed in any trophy competition in over five years, and they have not been crowned league champions in almost ten years. This is unacceptable for a club that dominated not only their home country but also the rest of the world throughout the 1990s and the 2000s.

In order for the owners to recoup some of the money they put into purchasing the club, they will need to invest additional funds into the playing squad as well. In addition, in order to bring the stadium and the club's training facilities into the modern era, investments will be required in both of these locations.

It's a sad state of affairs and something that never should have been allowed to happen, but with a new owner at the helm, hopefully United can start making the moves necessary to get back to the top of the league.

Nevertheless, there is the small matter of determining whether or not the Glazers will sell at all, let alone to whom.