Portsmouth will enter administration unless a buyer found by Friday

Portsmouth will become the first Premier League club to enter administration if a new buyer is not found by Friday, the owner, Balram Chainrai, has revealed. A statement on the club's website said: "Businessman Balram Chainrai, the owner of Portsmouth Football Club, has today served notice that the club will go into administration unless new owners can be found by Friday." It continued: "Mr Chainrai and fellow investors from his Portpin investment vehicle are in London to continue talks with representatives of four different groups interested in buying the club, but have had to reluctantly accept that it is now unlikely a deal can be done before a winding-up hearing, due to be heard in the high court on Monday." Phil Hall, a spokesman for Chainrai, pledged that the owner would fund any administration from his "own pocket". He said: "Mr Chainrai has agreed to continue funding the club going forward until its long-term future is decided. He will also pay for the administration process out of his own pocket. "There is now only a short window of opportunity for buyers to come in with a credible offer. We have to be realistic and having the club wound up is not an option as far as we are concerned" Hall also indicated that Chainrai is disappointed with the regime of the previous owner, Ali al-Faraj. He added: "They are the victims of circumstance, having injected funds in the form of a short-term loan to the al-Faraj group, who subsequently invested the money in the club. The partners have put £17m of their own money into the club and have a responsibility to ensure Portsmouth Football Club survives. "Administration would mean the club re-emerging as a healthy financial entity. The club would then become an attractive proposition for a potential buyer who could invest new funds in rebuilding the club's future. We would like to ask the fans, the staff and management of Portsmouth Football Club for their support and patience should this step be taken, as they believe it is the only route left open to them. "The serving of this notice means the winding-up order is automatically suspended. It means the club is safe, it can fulfil its fixtures and as far as is possible, it is business as usual. Mr Chainrai hopes the supporters will get fully behind the team as usual for their Premier League match at Burnley on Saturday and the following weekend's FA Cup quarter-final at home to Birmingham." As revealed by the Guardian this morning, Endeavor Plan, one of the two prospective buyers included in the statement of affairs lodged at the high court, ruled itself out of purchasing the financially stricken club before Monday when the winding-up petition will be heard. An interested South African consortium is also thought unlikely to buy the club before Friday. Portsmouth will be deducted nine points should they, as now expected, go into administration