Manchester United

The Qatari banker has already submitted one bid for the 20-time English champions, which is believed to have been in the region of £4.5bn, short of the valuation set by the club's current owners the Glazers.

There had been suggestions in recent says that Sheikh Jassim was considering walking away from the deal, with the Glazer family showing no signs of being willing to drop their valuation.

However, according to Sky Sports News, the businessman is set to make a fresh offer for the Red Devils within the next 10 days.

The report claims that Sheikh Jassim's representatives visited Old Trafford and the Carrington training complex on Thursday to discuss a possible acquisition of the club.

Sheikh Jassim was allegedly not present in Manchester, with the Qatari instead sending a delegation from London to meet with senior officials from Man United.

Experts in finance, banking, property and law were said to be present, with the banker serous about purchasing the 20-time English champions despite recent reports that he was having second thoughts.

"Sheikh Jassim made a bid before the soft deadline a month ago. The Glazer family liked that offer enough to say they would go through to the second stage of the process," said reporter Kaveh Solhekol.

"Sheikh Jassim's representatives have now been to the club's training ground to meet some of the senior executives and to have a look at what they would actually be buying."

Man United bidders, which also include Sir Jim Ratcliffe, have allegedly been told that they have 10 days to submit new offers for the club.

Ratcliffe is expected to be in Manchester alongside his team on Friday for discussions, but the British billionaire is now believed to be behind Sheikh Jassim in the pecking order.

While the Qatari wants a full purchase of the club, it is believed that Ratcliffe is only looking to take on the 69% currently owned by the Glazer family.

Raine Group are working for the Glazers on the sale, and the prospective new offers will be directed to the US bank, with a deal potentially going through before the start of June.

A number of other parties are believed to be keeping a close eye on the developments, although Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe are the clear frontrunners at this stage of proceedings.