Sir Jim Ratcliffe has seemingly emerged as a contender to buy Chelsea, the British businessman in line to rival a consortium led by Todd Boehly.
Earlier on Friday, it was claimed that Boehly was regarded as the frontrunner out of three proposals to purchase the Premier League club.
According to The Telegraph, the other two consortiums - led by Sir Martin Broughton and Stephen Pagliuca - have been informed by US merchant bank Raine Group that they would not be named as the preferred bidder.
However, in a statement, Ratcliffe has revealed that he is prepared to make a £4.25bn offer for Chelsea, committing £2.5bn to "the Charitable Trust to support victims of the war".
Furthermore, the 69-year-old has said that he is ready to invest £1.75bn into Chelsea over a 10-year period, as well as committing to making Stamford Bridge "a world-class stadium".
While the bid is understood to be the most lucrative currently on the table, Ratcliffe will likely have to hold intensive talks with Raine Group and supporter groups to be regarded as a viable option.
Darren Plant
