INDIAN tycoon Ahsan Ali Syed remains confident of buying Blackburn Rovers as the race to purchase the club took another twist over the weekend.

The head of Bahrain-based asset management firm Western Gulf Advisory has admitted defeat in concluding the deal before tomorrow’s close of the transfer window but insists everything is going ‘very well’.

Ali Syed, 36, hopes to conclude his due diligence this week and is now targeting completing the sale by the end of September.

This comes in the wake though of the emergence of two new potential buyers, a group from Australia and another from Asia, leaving any notion of a Rovers takeover being a one-horse race to be premature.

It has been claimed three mystery Australian tycoons, who made their fortunes in stocks and shares, have bid £25million for the club and are prepared to provide a substantial transfer kitty for January.

Another interested buyer with links to India has also been linked but neither party have been named.

Syed’s bid is understood to be further advanced than any of his competitors, having agreed a one-month period of exclusivity in which no-one else can buy the club as they explore the finances, but no binding deals have been done.

Rovers continue to keep their own counsel but have stated all along that there are several interested parties and that the process is ongoing.

Ali Syed has promised a £300million investment into Rovers should his takeover bid succeed, including providing manager Sam Allardyce with a short term £100m transfer kitty.

Spokesperson Julia Thiem said: “We are aware of other interest in the past but we are not at all concerned. We are progressing well and hopeful of completing the due diligence process this week. It’s fingers crossed for that.

“Then we will approach the Premier League to complete the paperwork needed. We also have to make an offer to the minority shareholders of the club.

“It is a little more complicated because of [the majority] of the club being owned by a trust.

“The lawyers say this could make the deal longer to conclude. We hope it could be done by the middle or end of September. But it is difficult to know at the moment.”

“Things are going very well.”

While Syed’s agreement of exclusivity means no one else can buy the club during this period, the Lancashire Telegraph understand other suitors are still in negotiations with Rothschilds, the investment banker charged with selling the club for the Walker Trust.

To be allowed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), Syed’s offer for the club must have been generally thought to be acceptable by Rothschilds but, with no binding agreements, the door remains open for other suitors.

To date, Ali Syed and Mumbai businessman Saurin Shah, also still a ‘live’ suitor, have been the only two interested buyers to have made their bids public – but the Lancashire Telegraph has always understood there has been other interest.

A group from Dubai is believed to have dropped out of running while it is also believed there has been interest from an American group in the past.

Now reports suggesting two more parties want to buy the club has left supporters in a state of confusion over the direction of their club’s future as Rovers continue to do their best to ensure they ultimately get the right man for the club.

* Rovers have been drawn against familiar foes Aston Villa at Villa Park in the third round of the Carling Cup.

The two sides met in the competition last season, when Villa triumphed in their two-legged semi-final.

The tie will be played in the week commencing September 20.