The next four days are the most critical in the 140-year history of Rangers.

They will determine if the club retains its original corporate shell, or continues life as a newco, but the drama will not be contained to the creditors' meeting on Thursday. Supporters still have a role to play in the outcome of the crisis that has gripped the club.

Charles Green has, belatedly, gathered the funding required for the £8.5m loan purchase, at 8% interest, but there are valid concerns that he has no other money to hand. Running costs are roughly £3m per month, and have been accruing since June 1. Although some of the trading shortfall in that time is coming out of the creditors' pot, Green faces an immediate challenge in finding the money to run Rangers.

That is why he is courting the club's fans so enthusiastically, but also why they should remain anxious. Green claimed yesterday that "by the end of July, we will have £30m-plus in the bank from [a] share issue", yet the previous day he claimed that season ticket revenue was "crucial".

Supporters – who are still psychologically scarred by the actions of the previous two owners that brought Rangers to the brink of financial collapse – remain cautious in the face of such contradictions, and many will wait before renewing.

"If I was a Rangers fan, I would be suspicious," Green said. "I don't think people should just jump like lemmings off a cliff. The reason [the £8.5m] is a loan is because I never wanted the 26,000 existing shareholders diluted. If I put all those monies in as equity on the first day, they would have been down to nothing. We are coming up with a structure that ensures the existing shareholders are not prejudiced."

The company voluntary arrangement (CVA) proposal reveals some of Green's contingencies. Clause 5.15 allows his Sevco consortium, if granted consent by Duff & Phelps, the administrators, to access the secure bank account holding any funds generated by season ticket renewals and transfers to cover "CVA trading costs", after the 28-day appeal period following Thursday's creditors' vote.

Yet the same document reveals that Sevco's purchase loan may not be drawn down until July 31, so in theory Green could access the fans' money before the consortium has paid all of the £8.5m price. That money would be used to cover any shortfall incurred since June 1, despite all other bidders for the club making available extra funds for running costs over and above their offer price, on the instructions of Duff & Phelps.

Dave King and Paul Murray, who leads the Blue Knights consortium that remains one of three groups still actively interested in buying Rangers, have warned fans of concerns about Green's consortium lacking the funds to run the club. In effect, a battle for the hearts and minds of supporters is taking place. Many still think that renewing is a test of their loyalty to the club, even although in reality not renewing is a test of any new owner's credibility.

One insolvency expert, working on the basis that season ticket renewals bring in £17m, and that Green cuts costs to £25m a year, believes that without additional extra funding the "critical time for fresh financial failure would be around February/March 2013".

These scenarios assume that the CVA will be voted through, yet opinion on the likely actions of HMRC remains split amongst accountancy experts. Some believe that the tax man will take the best financial offer available, but many others believe that the proposal put together by Duff & Phelps does not even meet HMRC's guidelines, which include paying future dividends.

Ticketus, the other major creditor, will make a commercial decision and vote for the CVA, but the outcome of Thursday's meeting will be in doubt until then. There will be further complications, since King has vowed to challenge the sale of Craig Whyte's shares to Green. He is also adamant that he remains a director, even although Duff & Phelps attempted last Friday to remove him from the board.

"I have the first right of refusal on Craig Whyte's shares and I will legally contest any transfer to Mr Green," King said in an email to Duff & Phelps. "[Rangers director] Mr [Andrew] Ellis has confirmed that Mr Whyte advised him of his agreement with me. The agreement is therefore not contentious and I have no doubt will be upheld before a Scottish court. I fully recognise that Duff & Phelps have a limited concern about the future needs of the club, but I am concerned that this debacle does not repeat itself. Most of this can be sorted out in the courts, given that that seems to be the direction you are steering towards. You cannot seriously believe that the proposed CVA can achieve this. You will have earned your fees and can then move on."

Green has dismissed this challenge, and also stated that Whyte will retain "no [shares] at all". The Yorkshireman remains a bullish figure, and is certain that the club will be owned by his consortium come Thursday. He also admits that the group are buying Rangers to make profit. "If fans don't want us, buy the shares and kick us out," he said. "I will have a contract. If you don't like me, sack me."

Fans must also decide if they wish to renew their season tickets, or first wait to see if all of Green's promises come true.