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club for sale

SURGING RUN: Liverpool's Steven Gerrard, second from right, runs at the Blackburn Rovers defence during their English Premier League match in Blackburn, England at the weekend. 06/12/08. Pic. Phil Noble. © Reuters.
SURGING RUN: Liverpool's Steven Gerrard, second from right, runs at the Blackburn Rovers defence during their English Premier League match in Blackburn, England at the weekend. 06/12/08. Pic. Phil Noble. © Reuters.

LONDON - Portsmouth owner Alexandre Gaydamak confirmed yesterday that he is keen to sell the club.

LONDON - Portsmouth owner Alexandre Gaydamak confirmed yesterday that he is keen to sell the club.

A South African consortium has been linked with a takeover, while a representative of Ukrainian billionaire Rinat Akhmetov confirmed to Deutsche Presse-Agentur he had been approached as a potential buyer by representatives acting for the Premier League club.

"I have come to realise over a period of time that I can no longer invest the time required  to oversee the running of the club," Gaydamak told the Sunday Mirror.

"I think it's only right to consider the sale of the club to a group or individual who can come in and invest the time and money to ensure the club reaches its true potential.

"First and foremost, it is far more important for me to find the right buyer - with the club's best interests at heart - rather than sell out at the first opportunity."

That, he suggested, meant an owner who is prepared to fund the construction of a new stadium so Portsmouth can leave their dilapidated Fratton Park home.

Meanwhile, Liverpool beat Blackburn Rovers 3-1 at Ewood Park on Saturday to stay top of the Premier League and increase the pressure on Rovers manager Paul Ince whose team have now gone 10 league matches without a win.

Xabi Alonso got the breakthrough goal after 69 minutes before Yossi Benayoun added a second and Steven Gerrard scored a late third to take Liverpool to 37 points from 16 matches.

The top four all won with Chelsea beating Bolton Wanderers 2-0, Manchester United overcoming a stubborn Sunderland side 1-0 and Arsenal edging Wigan Athletic 1-0.

Chelsea, one point behind the leaders, won thanks to goals from former Bolton striker Nicolas Anelka and a spectacular bicycle kick from Deco.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said he fears for the future of the game if players start to invoke the little-known Webster Rule regarding their contracts. It allows players to leave for nothing after three years for a club in another country.

Wenger, who is keen to keep all his talented young players at the Emirates Stadium for as long as possible, told the Sunday Express that football could be thrown into chaos if players and their agents apply the ruling.

Other English Premier League results:

Fulham 1, Manchester City 1; Hull City 2, Middlesbrough 1; Newcastle United 2, Stoke City 2. - Sapa-DPA and Reuters

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