Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Portsmouth on brink of takeover

By Mandeep Sanghera

Sulaiman Al Fahim
Al Fahim helped broker the deal which saw Man City taken over

Portsmouth are close to being taken over by United Arab Emirates businessman Sulaiman Al Fahim, BBC Sport understands.

Al Fahim was the frontman for Abu Dhabi United Group when it took over Manchester City in September 2008.

He is believed to held talks with Pompey owner Alexandre Gaydamak at the Champions League final in Rome.

Pompey, who avoided relegation from the Premier League this season, have yet to make any comment on the takeover.

Gaydamak stated late last year that he wanted to sell the club.

He revealed he had rejected two offers for the south coast outfit as he wanted to sell to a buyer who would be committed to funding a new stadium and training ground for the club.

Gaydamak initially bought into Pompey as joint owner in January 2006 when he struck a deal with then-chairman Milan Mandaric.

He then bought out Mandaric, who now owns Leicester City, for about £32m.

Under the Franco-Russian's ownership the club won the 2008 FA Cup but he has said he can "no longer invest the time required to oversee the running of the club".

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