Wigan Athletic fans given reason to believe after positive weekend

It's understood strides have been made over the last 48-72 hours, which will hopefully put an end to the club's second existential crisis in the space of three years.

Soft drinks 'entrepreneur' Sarbjot Johal had an offer accepted last Sunday evening, but it quickly became apparent he was not the answer to Latics' problems.

Having spent the best part of six months failing to convince the EFL of his suitability to take over another north-west outfit, Morecambe, there has been little confidence he would somehow get the green light to take control at the DW.

It's understood another option is now in pole position, which has the support of all key stakeholders.

The priority at the moment is to ensure the players get paid by next Friday (June 16), which has been discussed during the last few days.

Once that's out of the way, focus would switch to a more long-term plan, which the prospective new ownership group would be committed to.

All that will be music to the ears of Latics boss Shaun Maloney, who has repeatedly seen any of his attempts at restoring stability to the increasingly difficult situation undermined.