Wigan Athletic fallback option can work, insists Lisa Nandy

The Wigan MP paid tribute to volunteers and the club's former staff who have worked tirelessly to set-up a fundraising campaign which aims to reach £500,000 by Monday.

And, with fans' support, she believes they can satisfy the EFL that this can be a viable alternative if no buyer emerges in time.

"We've been trying to find a buyer and with a few weeks to go, we need to make sure there's a fallback option - and we do not allow for the possibility that this club will fail," said Nandy, who was at the DW Stadium for today's launch.

"We've spoken to clubs who've done this before, the council, the EFL, and I'm confident we can make this work - but we need people to support us financially to make it work.

"Jonathan Jackson (Latics' ex-CEO) and some other staff have been made redundant but are working 24/7 to make sure the club survives. The supporters club has led this, they've been brilliant, there's been a lot of work gone into this.

"This is about fans coming together to support our club. We're asking people to put their hands in their pockets and trust us to take the club forward."

Latics were put into administration on July 1 and the 12-point penalty condemned them to relegation to League One.

But with no firm bids on the table, administrators are running out of time to find a new owner before the new season starts.

"Wigan is a good club, this should not have happened to us," said Nandy. "We should have secured a buyer by now. But once you go into administration, it's out of the club's hands, it's out of the fans' hands, and it's down to the administrators and how they pursue the process.

"It was always a possibility, with a few weeks to go, we'd have a scenario facing us like this - and it is one we can't accept. We have to save this club."

The crowdfunder page can be found here