Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani is set to make a renewed bid for Manchester United before the end of the month.
The Qatari was one of several bidders still involved in the second round of bidding, along with British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe. However, another of the interested parties, Finnish tycoon Thomas Ziliacus, has pulled out of the running.
Current owners the Glazer family put the club up for sale in November, with a number of potential owners coming forward in the new year. However, as we prepare for a third round of bidding, nothing is set in stone when it comes to United's next custodians.
According to Sky Sports, Sheikh Jassim will make a new bid before the fresh deadline of April 28. The banker is said to remain "100 per cent committed" to his bid, and is not thought to have budged from his position of wanting to buy 100 per cent of the club.
This differs slightly from Ratcliffe's bid, with the Englishman interested in the Glazers' 69 per cent stake. Other parties have explored the possibility of making smaller investments, potentially paving the way for members of the Glazer family to retain a stake of some kind.
The Glazers are understood to be holding out for £6bn for the club, a sum which would be a record for a sports takeover of this kind. However, no bidder is thought to have met their asking price.
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With the process continuing to draw on, the Manchester United Supporters' Trust (MUST) has issued a statement urging a speedy sale. MUST has been vocal throughout, sending messages to potential bidders amid questions over the Glazers' future in Manchester.
"When it was announced in November that the Glazers were undertaking a “strategic review” and inviting offers to buy the Club, MUST welcomed the news and went on to urge the majority owners to move ahead with the process with speed, so that any period of uncertainty was as short as possible," the statement reads.
"Nearly five months on, we read speculation that offers from prospective buyers remain below the Glazers valuation, and that a third round of offers will now be invited.
"With Erik Ten Hag having made such great progress in his first season, and with the vital summer transfer window a matter of weeks away, the news of these delays and further prolonged uncertainty are of great concern. Erik needs to know what resources he has to spend so he can make the signings the Club needs, and the whole management resources of the Club need to be focussed on supporting him in that. That cannot be the case with the future ownership so unclear.
"We are also unable to move forward on major investment projects - not least the stadium redevelopment as we remain in limbo.
"We are in dire need of new investment, which undoubtedly requires new ownership. MUST, along with United fans all around the world, are calling for this process to be concluded without further delay."
