Bolton Wanderers: League One club on verge of liquidation after being given 14 days to save their future

If this dispute cannot be resolved, the league will reactivate the notice of withdrawal it suspended, giving the Trotters 14 days to come up with an alternative plan to meet their debts and fund the season

Bolton Wanderers are on the verge of liquidation after the English Football League gave their administrators 14 days to either sell the League One club or prove they can fund them for the rest of the season.

And as the administrator Paul Appleton has already revealed that there is no money left to fund the club without a takeover by the Football Ventures consortium, the EFL verdict looks terminal.

Optimism had been growing on Tuesday that Bolton would meet the 5pm deadline set by the league to announce that the deal had been approved.

But in a statement released at 11.05pm, the EFL said: "Despite further exchanges with the administrators over the course of the Bank Holiday weekend, and right up until today's deadline of 5pm, a resolution to ongoing impasse in negotiations regarding a completion of sale at Bolton Wanderers has not yet been found.

"The EFL board has therefore taken the decision to lift the suspension on the notice of withdrawal, which was issued as per the EFL's insolvency policy when the club entered administration in May 2019.

"As per the league's articles of association, this will now give the club 14 days (11.59pm on 12 September, 2019) to meet all outstanding requirements of the league's insolvency policy or its membership in the EFL will be withdrawn."

Bolton could be expelled from the Football League (Getty)

It is understood the Bolton deal was ready to be signed on Friday afternoon and administrator Paul Appleton and the EFL were still confident it would be completed the following morning.

But that was when a disagreement emerged between former owner Ken Anderson and the club's biggest creditor Fildraw, the family trust set up by Bolton's great benefactor during their Premier League years, Eddie Davies.

Monaco-based Anderson, who was controversially allowed to take over at Bolton despite previously serving an eight-year ban from being a company director, has blamed the trust and its lawyer for the deal's delay, with the other parties involved pointing the finger at him.

It is understood Anderson, who has charges against the club's assets for debts of £2.5million, wants guarantees from Appleton that he will not be pursued by the administrator for any more money once Wanderers change hands. The trust, which has a charge for £10million of debt, is unwilling to grant that request.

If this was almost any other type of business, the deal would probably be completed and Anderson and Fildraw would be left to resolve this matter between themselves, so the club could continue as a going concern.

But the EFL simply cannot let Bolton, or Bury, stumble on, as there are implications for the competitive integrity of the league.

Bolton must be saved by the end of the 12 September (PA)

So if this dispute cannot be resolved, the league will reactivate the notice of withdrawal it suspended, giving the Trotters 14 days to come up with an alternative plan to meet their debts and fund the season.

That, however, would not really be a fortnight's respite, as Appleton has already said he will have to wind the club up, as Football Ventures have been funding his work and he will have a legal responsibility to prevent any further losses.

In the meantime, hundreds of Bolton fans have gathered at the University of Bolton stadium to express their frustration on a day loaded with poignant memories of better days, as it would be club legend Nat Lofthouse's birthday.

The so-called Lion of Vienna died in 2011, the year before Bolton were relegated from the Premier League, and his statue at the ground has become a rallying point for angry Trotters.