NO-HEADLINE

Noel Gallagher's claim that he will buy Manchester City when he returns from his world tour with Oasis has received a cautious welcome from the fanzine editor Dave Wallace.

Gallagher, an avid Blues fans who grew up in Burnage - two and a half miles from Maine Road - told the Sunday Morning Post in Hong Kong he intends to bail out the club with cash from sales of the band's latest album.

Wallace, the editor of King of the Kippax, though intrigued by the possibility of a multi-million pound buy-out, admits the Gallagher brothers' penchant for controversy could drag the strugglers to new depths.

"It's a great idea if he's got the money," Wallace said. "I don't think it's a publicity stunt because they've done wonders with the shirt sales. But it's a cautious `yes'. If they're controversial they could also blow the whole thing apart.

"I think Noel should talk to the fans first and, if they talk to the right people, it might be a good thing for us. If they could come in and move into the background that would be great."

The major shareholder Stephen Boler owns 7.7 million City shares, 24 per cent of the total, with a current price of pounds 1.20 each. There are reports that Boler is willing to sell his stake, but there would probably be further large expenses because of the need to buy new players.