PORTSMOUTH Football Club are apparently on the verge of being bought by an Arabian tycoon.

Sulaiman Al Fahim is believed to be attending the Champions' League final in Rome this evening as a guest of Pompey owner Alexandre Gaydamak.

Al Fahim was behind the takeover of Manchester City Football Club by the Abu Dhabi United Group, of which he is a board member.

Acording to reports from the Middle East, the Al Fahim, who hails from the United Arab Emirates, has had a growing interest in the Premier League since the deal which made Man City the most cash rich club in the world.

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He is also a UN Goodwill Ambassador, the star of the programme The Hydra Executives, which is the Arab version of The Apprentice and author of the best-selling book Brand Builder.

Portsmouth are in a dire financial situation and spent most of this season fearing relegation from the Premier League.

They have also had to abandon a number of high profile plans to build new a new stadium, first near the Naval dockyard and more recently near a former rubbish tip on Horsea Island.

Instead they have now said they intend to redevelop the cramped and dilapidated Fratton Park into a 30,000 seater stadium.

High profile players such as Sol Campbell, Peter Crouch and Glen Johnson have been widely expected to leave this summer.