Glazers tell Ferguson he has £160M to spend in summer

Sir Alex Ferguson has been assured by the Glazers he can spend big this summer.

Ferguson has spoken about finding at least three major signings during the close-season transfer market.

The Guardian says Ferguson has a substantial transfer budget at his disposal for big-name targets during a summer in which the club's bank account is expected to swell to more than £160m.

Club insiders say that any acquisitions will have to fit the template followed by Man Utd under the Glazers, with an emphasis on younger players who will retain value. The club has bought one player in the past 14 years who was over 27 and cost more than £3m – Dimitar Berbatov for £31m.

According to Man Utd's most recent accounts, the club have £113m in the bank. That has fuelled suspicions that the owners will withdraw some of it in dividends but insiders claim it is there for transfers and to guard against unforeseen events.