Whites owner Eddie Davies put Wanderers up for sale 15 months ago initially asking for £20 million up front to buy the club outright — but as debts piled up in the absence of his funding, he is now asking for a nominal amount.

The proof of £10-15m which had been sought from buyers to show they would take the club on as a going concern has also been reduced considerably.

Several factors have counted against Farnworth-born businessman Davies in his quest to sell the club.

Geography counts against the Whites, with clubs in and around London attracting much more interest than provincial ones on the doorstep of economic powerhouses such as Manchester United and Manchester City.

League position has also been a detrimental factor. Wanderers are currently rock bottom of the Championship and facing relegation to League One for the first time since 1993.

Wanderers say they have made the purchase of the club simpler for interested parties.

Much of the external debt has been stripped away, including a controversial high interest loan from Nucleus Finance which was secured partially against the stadium and the last of four parachute payments from the Whites’ time in the Premier League.

A handful of loans are still tied to the stadium, including those owed to Davies, vice-chairman Brett Warburton and other shareholders, but the majority of the outlay any potential purchaser will face is a staff wage bill of more than £1m a month until the summer.

Offices at the Macron Stadium have already been sold, and sources at the club also confirmed yesterday that two parties are in advanced negotiations to buy the training ground at Euxton for £2.5million.

When the club returns to London on February 22 they will have to satisfy the court that significant progress has been made on their rescue plan to avoid administration.