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The has left the Premier League very angry indeed.

While a senior official told me it was merely the start of a negotiation process, the has other ideas.

"We're in no rush," said an unnamed Football League club chairman as he and 71 others headed away from the Walkers Stadium's Great Hall after the emergency meeting at ground. "Why should we just accept what the Premier League tell us we should take? We need time to go away and discuss this."

But they don't have time. Because the Premier League is playing hard-ball and has set a deadline of the third week in May. It says it needs to have its spending plans in place before the AGM in early June and says it is a take-it-or-leave-it offer.

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It may have received little fanfare, but Thursday's emergency meeting of the 72 clubs in Leicester could be one of the most important in the game's recent history.

On the agenda are new to the lower divisions. Thanks to a bumper overseas broadcast deal, the Premier League board has drawn up a proposal that offers to increase the amount it shares over the course of the next three seasons. The Football League will discuss and vote on the plans, which, if approved, will be ratified at the Premier League's AGM in early June.

Parachute payments, the monies handed to relegated clubs to soften the financial shock of the drop, would more than double from £22m over two years to a massive £48m over four years, music to the ears of recently relegated Burnley, Hull and Portsmouth, who will all now enjoy a significant advantage over their Championship rivals in the coming seasons.

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has already referred one of its elite competitors to the just days after announcing a new partnership with the well-known psychiatric hospital.

On a visit to the illustrious clinic in Roehampton, south-west London, the Priory Group's chief operation officer Matthew Franzidis told me: "We've just started but we've had one referral so far since the agreement was reached. Whether that number increases in time we'll have to wait and see."

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Whatever the fate of West Ham's desperate bid to retain their Premier League status, I understand Gianfranco Zola's tenure at Upton Park is almost certain to end soon.

A leading agent with close ties to the club at the highest levels tells me that Steve McClaren, Martin Jol and Avram Grant are the leading candidates to replace the Italian.

Another contender, a current international manager, is also strongly in the frame, but his identity is shrouded in secrecy. It is not former West Ham fans' favourite and current Croatian boss Slaven Bilic.

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will either be fulfilled or dashed in December when Fifa's executive committee decides which of the seven candidates to choose.

Yet that is not the only key decision being made about tournament venues this year. Next month, Uefa gathers in Geneva to announce which country will host the 2016 European Championship.

Uefa has already made one adventurous choice by awarding . Now it could be set to spring another surprise in the shape of Turkey.

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Martin Broughton has had quite a weekend.

On Friday, the horse the co-owns, Ringaroses, won the 1655 at Aintree.

On Saturday, his beloved Chelsea FC reached the FA Cup Final at Wembley with .

Now, the former British Horseracing Authority chief seems set to be installed as the new chairman of Liverpool FC.

I understand Broughton and is considering forming part of a restructured board with a view to finding new investors.

In recent weeks, Broughton has had to contend with the with the BA cabin crew union, Unite. Ideal preparation, perhaps, for the infamously-divided Anfield boardroom.

But what does his possible arrival and the further appointment of Barclays Capital, the bank's investment arm, mean in terms of the future of the club?

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Liverpool will be relieved that their Europa League campaign continues after their

But perhaps more significant than the result was the presence at Anfield of co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, seen together at the stadium for the first time in almost six months.

The Americans were not just in town for the match. They have also been conducting important negotiations over the club's future.

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