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Bury could have been saved at the 11th hour with the English Football League considering extending Friday’s expulsion deadline after being informed a deal had been struck to sell the embattled club.

Just minutes before the League One side were due to lose their Football League status, the EFL announced owner Steve Dale had accepted an offer from C&N Sporting Risk.

The governing body said it was now in “discussions with the potential purchaser and await information to allow the board to consider a request for an extension to Friday’s deadline.”

Dale had been given until 23.59 on Friday to either provide proof to the EFL he could fund the Shakers this season or hand the club over to someone who can.

Extinction was the option if not but, after a day of claim and counter-claim, Dale told the PA news agency on Friday night he had agreed a deal.

Rory Campbell and Henry Newman’s C&N Sporting Risk, whose bid was made on Friday, have been working closely with Bury North MP James Frith.

Before the EFL’s announcement, Campbell and Newman told PA in a statement: “We can confirm that over the past 10 weeks we have been in discussions with Bury FC, the EFL and others with a view to putting forward a proposal to buy the club.

“It is a very complicated scenario and there remain a number of outstanding legal and other issues that have to be addressed. Our background is in football and data analytics and it should therefore not be surprising that we are taking a very detailed forensic look at the realities of Bury FC finances.

“A club like Bury ought to have a viable long-term future even if the short-term future is clearly very challenging. To that end, we have been in discussions with the EFL about an extension so that we can continue to explore the prospects for a purchase. We will be making no further comment at this stage.”

Dale’s declaration of a sale came just before 10pm, with a little over two hours remaining before the deadline.

The Cheshire-based businessman said throughout the day he had a buyer lined up but was unsure if a deal could be concluded before the deadline, having also asked fans to pledge money, while MP Frith had said a “credible bid” would be lodged along with proof of funding.

Dale bought Bury for £1 in December after previous owner Stewart Day ran up huge debts following years of overspending at Gigg Lane.

Having initially claimed to buy Bury for “philanthropic” reasons, Dale put the 134-year-old club into administration this summer and engineered a debt repayment scheme.

The scheme, known as a company voluntary arrangement, would see creditors paid only 25 per cent of what they are owed, with him and his associates being the main beneficiaries.

His plan, however, depended on Bury being allowed to start the season – with a small squad and skeleton staff – and the EFL handing over the club’s share of its central income.

That, as desperate Bury fans are well aware, has not happened.

Having previously greeted each EFL postponement of a Bury game – five league fixtures and an EFL Cup tie so far this season – with an angry statement on the club website, Dale announced he was willing to listen to offers for the club early last week.

England women’s team manager Phil Neville revealed that his mother Jill, who had been Bury’s club secretary, resigned from her job on Friday.

The former Manchester United defender, whose late father Neville has a stand named after him at Gigg Lane, told BBC Radio 5 Live: “My mum has worked there for 30 years, my dad’s got a stand named after him and to consider that today they might not have a football club is so upsetting.

“My mum’s devastated. She resigned on Friday because she couldn’t work with the current ownership.”

Nuno Espirito Santo warned Wolves’ place in the Europa League group stage is not yet secure, despite winning 3-2 away to Torino.

Wolves will welcome the Serie A side to Molineux next Thursday with an advantage carved out in Italy by a Bremer own goal and second-half strikes from Diogo Jota and Raul Jimenez.

But Wolves boss Nuno said at his post-match press conference: “It’s far from being over, it’s a close tie.

“We have to play next week against a very, very tough and a very good team.

“We played good, we were organised, we stayed in shape, we produced some goals but, like I say, there’s still one game to go.

“We have to be really, really good to perform again against a very, very good team.”

This was already Wolves’ seventh game of the season, with their Europa League commitments meaning they have been playing competitive football since July 25.

Nuno, however, retained seven of the side that had started the 1-1 Premier League draw against Manchester United at Molineux on Monday.

Among those who kept their place was Joao Moutinho, the 32-year-old Portugual midfielder who has started every one of Wolves’ seven games.

“He respects himself, he rests, he’s a fantastic player and other players play also,” Nuno said.

It’s a very, very busy schedule – we have to manage that and always try and make good decisions so the team stays compact and organised.

“Moutinho is just one case among others that play two games in a row and three games in a row, then we have to decide for the next one.

“The most important thing is that the players understand that they have to really, really work hard.

“We have to recover well to be able to cope with such a difficult time and such a difficult schedule.”

Wolves opened the scoring just before half-time when Bremer was credited with getting the final touch in a crowded goalmouth to Moutinho’s flighted free-kick.

Jota doubled the lead by finishing the impressive approach work of Adama Traore before Lorenzo De Silvestri immediately pulled one back for the hosts.

Jimenez restored Wolves’ two-goal lead with his fifth Europa League goal of the season, but Andrea Belotti converted a last-minute penalty to give Torino hope heading into the second leg.

On the performance of Traore – whose end product has often been questioned, even if his pace and power has not – Nuno said: “I’m pleased. He helped the team, others did what they had to do.

“It’s about tasks, it’s about rules, it’s about always being a team.

“Knowing that, when you know yourselves better and the characteristic of the player is what they can give to the team is important.”

Torino goalscorer De Silvestri told his club’s website: “We lost, but we have to think about our two goals scored.

“They still give us hope for the return match.

“They’re a very physical team, they put us in difficulty under that perspective.”

Stoke boss Nathan Jones suggested speculation around Jack Butland is affecting his goalkeeper after he made two costly mistakes in their 3-1 Sky Bet Championship defeat at Preston.

Daniel Johnson, Billy Bodin and Josh Harrop’s goals sealed North End’s second win of the season but they were aided at key moments by underwhelming Stoke defending.

Butland, the subject of much speculation over his Stoke future, was at fault for the goals the Potters conceded.

“We are on the bus and it’s on Sky Sports about him being left out of the England side,” said Jones of his goalkeeper.

“Everyone talks about him having to leave for his England place, but he’s got to do his job for Stoke first,” added Jones on Sky Sports.

“I don’t know where mentally he must be because there’s so much talk about him.

“You don’t go from being a top goalkeeper to making the errors he is, there must be something playing on his mind.

“But look, he’s a top keeper who trains really well, but it doesn’t help us.

“I have to pick a side to win a game because if I don’t, trust me there will be a lot more than Jack Butland to worry about.

“Since I’ve come here there’s been a hangover of players wanting to leave, players thinking they are proper players, players wanting to go and play in Europe, players thinking of their international careers.

“There hasn’t been a group here together who wants to play and focus and win games for Stoke City, that’s a problem.

“I thought we made big strides in that, but evidently we haven’t.”

Jones was also critical of his side’s defending in his post-match press conference, admitting: “You can’t defend like we did and expect to get anything from a game like this.

“We were definitely still alive at half-time, and I pointed that out to the players. They just didn’t take enough on board.

“A major problem for me is that teams are not having to do a hell of a lot to score against us. That’s costing us dearly.

“We’re not doing a hell of a lot wrong right now. I think Preston have had four efforts on target and scored with three of them.

“We competed well enough in the early stages, then we’ve gone and shot ourselves in the foot again.

“We haven’t defended well enough, and when that happens in the Championship you get punished.”

James McClean’s late finish proved a consolation against a clinical Preston side.

Early on, Bodin’s right-wing cross was only meekly headed clear into the path of Johnson, who opened the scoring as Butland allowed his shot to creep in.

Bodin’s weak then shot squirmed under Butland’s grasp and the game was wrapped up in the second half when the goalkeeper parried a shot into the path of Harrop who tucked home.

“This was always going to be a tough game so I’m really pleased,” said Preston manager Alex Neil, who confirmed striker Louis Moult has suffered a cruciate ligament injury and could miss the rest of the season.

“The lads have carried out all their instructions great, so I’m really pleased everything worked out well on the night.

“It’s hard to be critical after a performance like that, but to be honest I thought we were poorer than we were at Swansea on Saturday.

“We struggled at home at times last season, so that home form needed improving. It’s been a good start this time around, so we have to build on these opening two wins here.