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US billionaire Leon Cooperman has reportedly bought just under one million shares in Manchester United.

Bloomberg have reported that the shares purchased by Cooperman - who is a former hedge fund manager - are worth £13.5m.

The shock news of Cooperman's investment comes as Sir Jim Ratcliffe's deal to take over 25 per cent of the club for £1.3bn is nearing completion after a long-winded sale process that began last November.   

Ratcliffe and Qatari royal Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani were the front-runners in the bidding war and both parties submitted multiple offers, before Jassim withdrew from the process last month having bid £5.5bn.

Cooperman, 80, founded Omega Advisors which is a private investment partnership based in New York City and has a reported net worth of more than £2bn.