manager of Manchester United. He rejected a £10m bid for the club by Robert Maxwell in 1984. In 1989, he tried to sell the club to the property developer Michael Knighton for £20m. The sale collapsed when after being given access to the club's books Knighton was unable to raise the funds to pay for the club. However, Knighton was still given a seat on the board, and sources at the time suggested that this was in exchange for keeping quiet about what he had seen in the books. After the failed sale the club's other directors persuaded Edwards to float the club on the stock market. This raised significant funds the majority for the existing shareholders such as Edwards. Being a public company did not have the stabilising effect that was originally hoped for. The club has been subject to takeover proposals by Rupert Murdoch's BSkyB with Edwards reportedly agreeing to sell his stake for £98 million. Edwards gradually disposed of his equity in the club and resigned as Chief Executive in 2000, appointing Peter Kenyon as his successor. Meanwhile, his efforts helped Manchester United enjoy some of the finest moments of their history during the 1990s and 2000s. The appointment of Alex Ferguson as manager in 1986 was indeed the turning point in United's history after two decades of relative mediocrity, but it took time for things to improve. United finished second in the league in 1987–88 (Ferguson's first full season as manager), and around this time Edwards had made millions of pounds available to strengthen the squad with the reacquisition of Mark Hughes as well as the signing of high-profile players, including Brian McClair, Gary Pallister, Paul Ince, Neil Webb and Danny Wallace. However, an 11th-place finish in 1988–89 tested the patience of the club's supporters and as 1989 drew to a close, United's form was so bad (they occupied 15th place in the league on Christmas Day) that there were continued calls from the fans for Alex Ferguson to be sacked. Fans also demanded Edwards's resignation. However, Edwards stood by the manager and insisted that the issue of Ferguson being sacked was never up for debate. While Edwards admitted that he was disappointed with the lack of progress in the league, he understood the reasons for the disappointment, which was largely down to a series of injuries to key players, and said that he was pleased