WANDERERS learn today whether their administration escape plan will buy them time to find a new owner as a Championship club.

A two-man delegation will travel to the High Court in London to put forward a business plan aimed at repaying £3million in debts and creditors.

If successful, the club will be able to operate in the short term by using cash raised from the sale of the car park adjoining Middlebrook, and potentially player sales later this month.

If not, they will be forced to notify the Football League that they intend to go into voluntary administration, which normally carries with it an instant 12-point deduction.

That would leave Neil Lennon’s side a massive 19 points from safety with 19 games left to play and lead to the inevitable sale of key playing assets like Zach Clough and Josh Vela.

While the £2.2m owed to HMRC has been the headline figure worrying Wanderers fans, the winding up petition issued to the High Court has also enabled other businesses and individuals owed money by the club to step forward.

It is thought an extra £800,000 of creditors have stacked on top of the original claim.

Wanderers are expected to tell the court that the search for a new owner is reaching a conclusion, however, and their admission at lunchtime today could give a firm indication how close they really are to concluding negotiations.

Three parties are still in talks, with some suggestion behind the scenes that various contracts have now been signed and exchanged. The club insists the situation is ongoing but have not made a public statement since last month.

On the pitch the situation took another turn for the worst as Neil Lennon’s side were beaten 3-0 at Nottingham Forest.

The manager has again come under significant fire from supporters but insists he is still the man to lead the club away from trouble.

“Yes, we will endeavour to do everything we can to start winning games,” he told The Bolton News. “That’s our job. We believe in ourselves as a backroom team and we will keep going.

“You’ve got to keep going. We have a cup tie to win on Tuesday which will be difficult enough before a huge game against MK Dons.

“The gap is seven points which is not insurmountable but we are not winning games. We felt we could get something out of this game. But if you are making individual mistakes it makes life difficult.”