Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al-Thani remains confident of winning the race to buy Manchester United – ahead of Friday's third deadline for bids.
The Qatari-backed bid is set to lodge an new offer for United of £4.5billion, which will eclipse the £4bn proposal put forward by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the other major contender.
United owners the Glazers want £6bn for the club they bought for £790m back in 2005 in a highly-leveraged deal, which has seen more than £1bn paid out in interest and dividends.
The Glazers currently hold a 69 per cent stake of United, with the bid from Sheikh Jassim promising a complete buyout and clearance of the current £535.7m debt, in contrast to the proposal headed up by Ratcliffe.
In a new twist, Ratcliffe is understood to have proposed a deal whereby current co-chairmen, Avram and Joel Glazer, would remain stakeholders at United and maintain influence at the club.
Such a move would infuriate United's fanbase, which has been desperate to see the back of the Glazers, ever since their controversial takeover of the club nearly 20 years ago.
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Ratcliffe, head of the INEOS petrochemicals group, wants to purchase a controlling stake of more than 50 per cent in United, with the Glazers retaining 20 per cent and the remaining 30 per cent held by various investment vehicles.
Bids from other parties have been tabled, but these are not thought to be proposals under consideration by the Raine Group, which is conducting the process on behalf of the Glazers.
These bids include offers from American investment firms for minority stakes, with all parties having to submit revised offers by 10pm on Friday.
