West Ham United will step up their fight against paying Sheffield United compensation by lodging an appeal in the High Court this week. An arbitration panel ruled last month that West Ham are liable for compensation on the basis that Carlos Tévez, their former player, was worth more than the three points that separated them and Sheffield United, who were relegated, after the 2006-07 season.

The East London club, who breached Premier League rules in the transfer of the Argentina forward, have also asked the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, to hear the dispute and are willing to take the issue to Fifa.

West Ham’s appeal, which must be submitted by Thursday, will try to show that the panel made an error of law or came to incorrect findings of facts in its judgment and it will force the arbitration panel to delay deliberations on the level of compensation.

Sheffield United are revising their estimate of the cost of relegation to £50 million to take into account a second year outside the top flight. However, some legal experts say that it is unlikely that they will be able to prove that their loss extends to more than one season because they had an opportunity to gain promotion.

West Ham, who have a debt of about £40 million, are believed to have been put up for sale by their Icelandic owners because of the effects of the credit crunch. But Diego Tristán is expected to join the club until the end of the season, after the 32-year-old former Spain striker was released by Livorno, the Italian club.

The new owners of Manchester City stamped their mark on the club last night by confirming four new directors. Khaldoon al-Mubarak, who replaced Thaksin Shinawatra as chairman after the £200 million takeover of the club last month, is joined on the board by Simon Pearce, an adviser to the Abu Dhabi Government, Martin Edelman, a lawyer, and Victor Restis, an associate of Shinawatra.

Garry Cook, the executive chairman, keeps his place on the board.