Coventry City: Administrator announces final deadline

Coventry City administrator Paul Appleton has set a deadline of noon on Thursday for "best and final offers" for the League One club.

It has been reported there could be six potential bidders for the Sky Blues.

But the only known bids are from a consortium headed by US tycoon Preston Haskell IV and another involving the club's current owners Sisu.

Appleton would like any deal finalised before the fixture list for the new season is released on 19 June.

"Following Friday's deadline, I have received a number of indicative offers for the assets of Coventry City FC Limited," said Appleton, from London-based David Rubin and Partners.

"I am now inviting all interested parties to provide their best and final offers by noon on Thursday, June 13.

"Having discussed the situation with the Football League, and with the fixtures for the 2013-14 season due to be published on June 19, I believe the sale process must conclude quickly in order that arrangements can be made for the participation of Coventry City Football Club in the forthcoming season."

One reported contender, Warwickshire businessman Michael Byng, is now out of the running, having missed last Friday's deadline for indicative offers.

The club have been in a rent dispute with their stadium landlords, Arena Coventry Ltd, for more than a year.

But Sky Blues chief executive Tim Fisher revealed on Friday that the club are in talks with three fellow league clubs, all within a 30-mile radius of Coventry, about a potential groundshare deal, while they press on with plans to build a new stadium in the city.

City have been in administration since a High Court hearing in March.