Sulaiman Al-Fahim advises bids for Portsmouth, West Ham and Leeds United

Sulaiman Al-Fahim, who took control of Premier League soccer club Portsmouth in the summer before being forced to seek new investment in the autumn, has identified West Ham and Leeds United as the best investments in English soccer other than Pompey.

Al-Fahim, who still owns 10 per cent of a Portsmouth side that has been unable to pay its players' wages on time in three out of the last six months and is desperately seeking fresh investment, claimed to WorldSoccer.com that the club represents the best investment in England when asked which clubs would be best value for money.

"Looking at football clubs now, with £100m, it would be Portsmouth, Portsmouth and Portsmouth!" said Al-Fahim to WorldSoccer. "They would be first. Second would be West Ham United, third Leeds United. Newcastle United are good for investors looking for history, image, but it is a long, long-term investment.

"In the Italian league there are one or two very good opportunities, such as Bologna. In the Spanish league, Levante. Opening a new club in India or a professional club in the US would be perfect," he added

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Portsmouth are currently rock bottom of the Premier League, and favourites for relegation into the second tier. Attendances have fallen at Fratton Park, with the club's fans becoming increasingly disillusioned with the seemingly shambolic way in which Portsmouth is being run.

West Ham United, meanwhile, are four points above Portsmouth, and are known to have attracted a number of interested parties. The Upton Park club is currently in the hands of Icelandic banks after former owner Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson lost his personal fortune in the collapse of the Icelandic financial system. The West Ham manager, Gianfranco Zola, admitted last month that the Hammers may have to sell players like Rob Green, Matthew Upson, Scott Parker and Carlton Cole because of financial pressures.

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Unlike Portsmouth and West Ham, Leeds United are currently very much on the up. The Elland Road side famously crashed from the Premier League into the third tier of English soccer after failing to reach the Champions League, for which it had budgeted. Now, though, Leeds sit top of League One and are favourites for promotion back to The Championship. The club also beat Manchester United to progress to the Fourth Round of the FA Cup, though Jermaine Beckford, who scored the winning goal in that match, is expected to leave Elland Road by the end of the month.