A Finnish businessman has confirmed he has submitted a last-minute bid to buy Manchester United.
Thomas Zilliacus, founder and chairman of investment company Mobile FutureWorks, heads the third group to have publicly declared interest in a club takeover after Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani. The Finn wants to buy United in a 50-50 partnership with their fans, who will have a say in the decision-making process at the Premier League club.
Taking to Twitter, Zilliacus said: "I have put in a bid to buy Manchester United together with the fans, who will have equal say on all sporting matters. No more sheiks and oligarchs controlling football!" A deadline for offers had been set for 9pm on Wednesday and that has been extended after INEOS founder Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim, the chairman of Qatar Islamic Bank and the son of a former Qatari prime minister, confirmed they would submit second, improved bids. Zilliacus said his offer is based on United having a current market value of "just under 3.9 billion US dollars" (£3.17bn).
