Qatar’s plans to place Man Utd at the summit of Europe’s biggest multi-club network revealed

A plan to place Manchester United at the helm of Europe's most powerful multi-club network has been drawn up in the expectation that the English Premier League club will be brought under Qatari ownership by the beginning of next season.

Qatar Sports Investments already owns Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain and a de facto controlling stake in the Liga Portugal club, Sporting Braga. Last week, a group fronted by Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad al-Thani - chairman of the Qatari Islamic Bank and son of the gulf state's former Prime Minister - increased their offer to buy Manchester United plc in full, while QSI chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi announced his interest in taking control of La Liga 2's Malaga.

Record Sport understands that senior QSI executives envisage deploying Braga as a development club for both PSG and United. Elite talents would be signed from European and South American football then moved to Portugal to gain experience in Braga's first team before being transferred up the multi-club system to the Premier League or Ligue 1.

Currently third in Portugal's top tier behind Benfica and FC Porto, Braga announced the sale of 21.67% of the club to QSI in October. Antero Henrique, the former Sporting Director of PSG and current Sporting Director of the Qatar Stars League, is understood to have been tasked with devising a strategy to take best advantage of Qatar's burgeoning investments in European football.

Malaga have been owned by a subsidiary member of Qatar's ruling family, Abdullah Al-Thani, since 2010, but are currently under judicial administration and in danger of relegation from La Liga 2. QSI is considering bringing the club into its broad portfolio of sports investments with the aim of returning Malaga to