Arch-critic Littlejohn aims to take control

RICHARD LITTLEJOHN, the controversial broadcaster and columnist, is heading a consortium of wealthy Tottenham Hotspur supporters that wants to buy a controlling interest in the club from the chairman, Alan Sugar.

The consortium has been in talks with Mr Sugar for more than six months and is understood to have told him to name his price for a 29.9 per cent stake in the north London football club. Mr Sugar was thought to have valued his stake at between pounds 70m and pounds 80m, but it is understood that in the light of Sky's pounds 623m offer for Manchester United he may now be holding out for offers that would value his share at more than pounds 100m.

Mr Sugar owns 40.88 per cent in total and if a deal with Mr Littlejohn's consortium were to go through, the remainder of his stake would be passed to his son, Daniel.

The consortium wants to buy 29.9 per cent to give it a holding large enough to influence decision-making and block aggressive takeovers. It does not want a stake of 30 per cent or higher as it would be legally obliged to make an offer for the whole club, something it neither wants nor can afford.

The consortium has yet to receive a response from Mr Sugar, but Mr Littlejohn said yesterday: "Our offer is still on the table."

Tottenham yesterday turned down a bid for the club from the leisure group, Enic, which had valued the club at 80p per share, or about pounds 80m in total. Shares were trading at 85p each yesterday. Enic owns a host of European clubs, has a stake in Glasgow Rangers and is known to want to extend its interests with a move into the Premiership.

Mr Littlejohn's main employer, ironically, is Rupert Murdoch, on whose Sky television the former's chat show is screened and in whose Sun newspaper he writes a column twice a week.

Mr Littlejohn was originally approached by a group of wealthy Tottenham supporters to head a proposed purchase of Mr Sugar's shares. It now seems likely that Mr Sugar will ignore them and wait for a much improved offer for the club.

Tottenham supporters criticised Mr Sugar yesterday after he rejected the Enic bid. Mark Jacob, spokesman for the Tottenham Action Group, said: "Either Mr Sugar should come out once and for all and say the club is for sale and at what price, or else he should tell us his plans for the future and how he intends to bring the Premiership title to White Hart Lane this season, as he promised two years ago.

"The supporters are fed up with constant games in the boardroom and all the uncertainty is clearly having an effect on the performance of the team."