Chaos has ensued in the Manchester United takeover saga as the final deadline for second round of bids was extended at the last minute on Wednesday. Representatives of the two public bidders - Ineos group and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani - had earlier claimed that they had sent in bids before deadline. However, it emerged that at least one group later requested an extension.

A new deadline has not been set and it is said the Qatari group are awaiting clarification from the Raine Group. All bids are still likely to be short of the Glazers' desired asking price of £5-6bn. Apart from selling a majority stake to a bidder, the Glazers are also considering selling a minority stake to a US hedge fund in order to raise money.