Battle to buy Man Utd heats up as Qatar's Sheikh Jassim submits second bid

The battle to buy Manchester United heated up on Wednesday as Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Al Thani returned with a second bid for the English giants.

British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe is also expected to make a second offer for the 20-time English champions.

Raine, the merchant bank brought in to assist the sale of the club, had set a deadline of 2100GMT on Wednesday for interested parties to declare their offer.

But Sky Sports reported that the deadline has been pushed back to allow proposals to be fine-tuned.

United's owners, the Glazer family, have reportedly set a world record £6 billion ($7.3 billion) valuation for a sports club.

Sheikh Jassim's bid for 100 percent control of the club promises to wipe United's $620 million debt and invest in a new stadium and training ground, in addition to backing for the men's and women's teams.

A source close to Sheikh Jassim's bid told AFP he remains confident his bid is "the best for the club, fans and local community."