Never before has an English football powerhouse had such a rollercoaster 24 hours. 

Early on Wednesday, Tesla billionaire Elon Musk, the world's richest person, sent shock waves across the globe by tweeting that he was buying Manchester United, one of the world's most celebrated and sought-after sports teams. 

Within minutes, Musk's tweet attracted thousands of comments from diehard United supporters, who have long dreamed of kicking out the Glazer family after witnessing the club struggle to restore their former glory under the stingy American owners. 

Fans have already staged several fiery protests against the Glazers as United finished 35 points behind bitter rivals Manchester City last season. Despite the arrival of new manager Erik ten Hag, United still failed to show any signs of progress in the new campaign. 

For the club with the most top-flight titles in history, the Red Devils plumbed new depths on Saturday with a 4-0 humiliating loss at Brentford. It was United's second straight defeat, leaving them sit bottom of the Premier League table for the first time since August 21, 1992. 

For all the chaos and mayhem on and off the pitch, Musk was supposed to come to the rescue at Old Trafford with his deep pockets and uncanny knack for building a successful business.  

But then came the thunderbolt. 

Asked by a follower later in the day whether he was serious about buying United, Musk replied, "No, this is a long-running joke on Twitter. I'm not buying any sports teams."  

While Musk himself had poured cold water on the sensational idea of controlling United, a Bloomberg report instantly reignited United fan's optimism by revealing that the Glazers would consider selling a minority stake in the club. 

The American owners have held some "preliminary discussions about the possibility of bringing in a new investor," said the report, citing people familiar with the matter. 

United's share price rose in response to the Bloomberg story, and late on Wednesday, a new twist was brought in the saga by The Times, who claimed that British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe has made his intentions known that he wants to buy United.

"If the club is for sale, Jim is definitely a potential buyer," Ratcliffe's spokesperson told The Times in a statement.  

"If something like this was possible, we would be interested in talking with a view to long-term ownership. This is not about the money that has been spent or not spent. Jim is looking at what can be done now and, knowing how important the club is to the city, it feels like the time is right for a reset."

A boyhood fan of United, Ratcliffe is Britain's richest man and made his fortune with Ineos, a company he founded in 1998 which is now the fourth-largest chemical giants in the world. 

Unlike Musk, Ratcliffe boasts a rich experience in football industry and is one of few people who could genuinely finance a takeover. The 69-year-old currently owns French Ligue 1 side Nice and has long been linked with a potential United purchase. 

Back in 2019, Ratcliffe caused quite a stir by publicly slamming United's poor choice of managers and players in the transfer market over the past few years.  

"They haven't got the manager selection right, haven't bought well," Ratcliffe told reporters. "They have been the dumb money, which you see with players like Fred. 

"United have spent an immense amount since Ferguson left and been poor, to put it mildly. Shockingly poor, to be honest. We have a different approach here to be moderately intelligent about it. Try to do it more grassroots, trying to locate young talent. 

"Some clubs seem to have an ability to do that, Southampton, Lille. United have done it really poorly. They have lost the plot."

Ratcliffe made an unsuccessful offer to buy Chelsea earlier this year after Russian owner Roman Abramovich listed the London powerhouse for sale, but his bid was rejected. He stated that the only factor keeping him from placing a bid for United was the fact that his childhood was not up for sale at the time.

Now the situation has dramatically changed.  

It remains to be seen whether the Glazers would cede control of their English money-spinner in the short term. But, finger crossed, it may not be the last we see Ratcliffe grab the headlines.