Former Tottenham chairman Lord Sugar has criticised the "irresponsible manner'' in which he thinks most football clubs' finances are run, with Portsmouth facing the threat of being wound up on Wednesday over an unpaid tax debt.

GettyImagesLord Sugar: Chariman of Spurs from 1991-2001.

Representatives of Portsmouth are attending a High Court hearing on Wednesday in an attempt tp obtain an extension to settle their debts with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. If they fail to do so, the club could be wound up or forced to enter administration and suffer a subsequent points penalty.

And Sugar, who was chairman of Spurs from 1991- 200,1 believes Portsmouth will go on even if forced into administration, but feels their problems are symptomatic of a wider issue - football clubs spending beyond their means.

"The problem is the irresponsible manner in which all clubs are run - not just Portsmouth," Sugar told BBC Radio Five Live.

"(They are) spending far too much money, 90% of their income is spent on players and players' salaries, and it's something that should have been nipped in the bud years ago.''

"Cristiano Ronaldo was sold (for £80million, by Manchester United to Real Madrid). God forbid he got run over by the number 36 bus in Madrid - he'd be worth nothing,'' he added. That's how vulnerable football is.''

Sugar's also expressed his disdain at regularly increasing ticket prices, with the most expensive tickets at White Hart Lane on sale for £75.

"It is outrageous what a man, his two kids and his wife have to pay to go and watch a football game,'' Sugar said. "Families used to sit down and have a serious discussion about whether they could afford to buy a toaster or a new washing machine which might be a couple of hundred quid.

"Now, in that industry, you can buy toasters for ten quid or a TV for a £100, but it costs over £200 to go and watch a football match.''

Sugar, who was also critical of the Glazer family's leveraged takeover of Manchester United which he feels could put the club in "serious, serious trouble'', believes a solution to the problem would be to put half of all broadcast revenue in a trust.

"I advocated years ago taking the money that is thrown at the clubs by the television companies and sticking half of it in a trust, and only allowing half of it to be distributed to the clubs to spend on players,'' Sugar said.

"A salary cap has got a lot of implications with European law, you can't tell people what they can earn and what they can pay. But the (Premier) League could have taken the £1 billion a year or whatever they get and put half a billion a year into a trust.

"That trust should be used to distribute to the clubs to improve on their grounds, improve on their training and all that type of stuff. It should be absolutely taboo to spend (the trust money) on players.''