Southampton's future will be decided on Monday at a special Football League meeting to clarify the League's stance on the club.
Bidders Pinnacle want to appeal their ten point deduction claiming, as the club originally claimed, that the club was never in Administration as the parent company was the one to go under. Pinnacle's period of exclusivity on the deal has now expired, and it appears unlikely that the FL will change it's stance after employing a forensic accountant to decipher the Saints' accounts before imposing the penalty.
Pinnacle's bid for the club depends on it merely buying the club itself, the training ground, and the stadium, leaving the bulk of the other 50-odd companies that made up parent company Southampton Leisure Holdings to go under. Those companies mainly provided anciliary services to the club, including the supporters club, corporate hospitality, and even the local radio station.
Update: A second bidder is reported to now be back in talks with the club. Marc Jackson, who previously failed to buy Bournemouth when the finance fell through, has confirmed he has held preliminary talks with the Administrator.