If Liverpool were to win the Champions’ League they could present a strong case for playing in the tournament next season. However, the Premier League would resist any attempt to remove Champions’ League qualification from the side that finishes fourth The dilemma is that Everton are favourites to finish fourth. Liverpool are almost certain to miss out on the Champions’ League next season if they finish outside the top four in the Premiership – even if they go on to win the competition. With the FA Cup final coming up, the last thing we need is for this protracted and unsettling saga to drag on any longer.”However, no matter which way the United board decides to move, the club’s ultimate destiny looks to be in the hands of Cubic Expression.Having cut off talks with Glazer themselves in October, Magnier and McManus have stayed completely silent on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers owner, other than to state in January that “they remain long-term investors”.The Irish duo, who are notoriously reluctant to seek any sort of public profile outside their racing interests, would undoubtedly prefer to have the option of following a board recommendation, but that now seems increasingly unlikely to be available.. The influential fans’ group Shareholders United believes that the latter stance is the one Gill should be adopting and has urged club officials not to provide Glazer with any assistance over plans they have spent months campaigning against.”The board should not do anything to facilitate, support or encourage Glazer in his aggressive, hostile and damaging attempt to take over our club,” said the SU chairman Nick Towle.”If an offer is to be made, it should be left to Glazer himself to make it directly to shareholders and should not come via the board in any way, shape or form.”What is more, it is surely now time for the club to ask the Takeover Panel to issue a ‘put up or shut up’ deadline to Glazer.

Legal opinion over whether shareholders’ interests should take precedence over all others in takeovers is divided.The Glazer camp clearly believes they should, particularly as Gill has previously stated that 300p would be a “fair price”, while an alternative view is that the views of United’s supporters should also be taken into account. Although there is no apparent change in Gill’s position from 11 February, when he authorised a statement saying Glazer’s proposals were “aggressive” and “potentially damaging” to the long-term interests of the business, it seems his hand is being forced by the threat of legal action.Some hedgefund holders believe an anticipated 300p per share offer from Glazer would constitute a good deal, given that United shares were trading at 269p yesterday afternoon and are ready to challenge Gill in court should they not be allowed the opportunity to vote on the American’s plans. When you are playing the big clubs, they don’t like it when we put our foot in But you’ve got to. If you sit back and let them play, they will destroy you.”Reid also said Blackburn would not let the season fizzle out, despite having guaranteed their safety. “We are looking at climbing a few places and finishing in the top half,” he said..

The Manchester United board has been urged not to give Malcolm Glazer any encouragement over his prospective £800m takeover of the Old Trafford club. United’s directors, led by the chief executive David Gill, are mulling over a formal reaction to the revised proposals submitted by the Glazer camp almost a fortnight ago. While the club has refused to comment on the matter since Gill declared that the board would not, there is widespread speculation it will adopt a “neutral” stance, neither recommending, nor rejecting a potential bid.
Instead, it is assumed that the board will refer the decision to the shareholders, effectively placing United’s future in the hands of the Irish racing tycoons John Magnier and J P McManus, who through their Cubic Expression investment vehicle own a 28.9 per cent stake in the club. You still look at the other results but we can only concentrate on what we are doing.”There are so many ups and downs in terms of results so I don’t think anyone is going to predict what is going to happen. But we need to push on again.”We’ve got a good team spirit, everyone in the camp is very close and we are going to need that over these last three games.”The Blackburn midfielder Steven Reid has hit out at the criticism heaped upon Mark Hughes’ side for their style of play, most notably from Ars? Wenger after Arsenal’s FA Cup semi-final triumph.”We have been getting a lot of criticism but when we get the ball down and play, we are not a bad side,” Reid said.”Some of the criticism has been a bit harsh. Obviously, we are disappointed not to get the win – but we have just got to keep going. Three months ago if you had said, ‘Would you be happy with this position?’ we would have said, ‘Of course we’ll be happy’.”We’ve got two massive games coming up against Arsenal on Monday and then against Manchester United.

We went to Highbury with a plan and a system and it is going to be important again for us. We know that Southampton have to play Norwich and Palace, but it is in our hands now. Riccardo Scimeca believes West Bromwich Albion can take heart from the recent unexpected results of Norwich City and Crystal Palace in their battle for Premiership survival as they prepare for two demanding games against Arsenal and Manchester United.
Albion have the most difficult run-in of the bottom four sides before they complete the campaign with a home fixture against Portsmouth. On a slow seaming pitch, Lancashire’s 196 could be competitive, especially if the visitors bowl as wisely as their opponents. And Dominic Cork gave Lancashire the perfect start when he trapped Stephen Moore for nought in the second over of Worcestershire’s reply, but this proved to be their only success.Hick was dropped by Mark Chilton at third slip on 15 and by the close he looked ominous on 32. Brett Emerton’s second-half equaliser for Blackburn at The Hawthorns on Tuesday evening cost Bryan Robson’s men two precious points.But Scimeca cites Norwich’s recent surprise win over Manchester United and Palace’s unexpected weekend triumph over Liverpool as evidence that the Baggies may not be chasing a lost cause “We are still in the mix,” Scimeca said “Three of us are all on 30 points now.

Lancashire will need to get rid of him early today if they want to stay in the contest.Ali found the outside edge of Flintoff’s bat with a delivery he could do little about. Flintoff’s uncontrolled push flew to Hick at second slip.”I was probably a little eager and went after one I could have left,” Flintoff said “But the ankle felt fine. I don’t know when I will be back bowling again, it’s very much day to day at the moment.”Lancashire’s openers looked in little trouble against the new ball. But with the first ball after lunch, Chaminda Vaas bowled Iain Sutcliffe. Vaas took two further wickets before Mason cleaned up the tail..