BURY are on the verge of selling promising young defender Matty Foulds for what is understood to be a substantial fee.

Manager David Flitcroft has confirmed the Shakers have received bids from a Premier League and a Championship club while it is understood numerous other sides have expressed an interest.

Foulds, aged 17, has made two appearances for Bury since signing a professional deal over the summer and was pulled from the squad for Tuesday night's defeat to Morecambe in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy after the bids materialised.

"We have got some very good bids in for him, which have been bubbling along for a week now," said Flitcroft.

"Some fantastic football clubs want his services so I have got to look after that, the organisation and the business.

"So we took a business decision not to play Matty.

"They are Championship and Premiership clubs. We will follow that up and see where that leads us to."

Flitcroft added that if a deal can be reached that Foulds would more than likely leave the club initially on loan, with his move becoming permanent in January.

While Bury could stand to benefit from at least a six-figure sum, which would free up the club to bring in much-needed reinforcements, the manager admitted he would regret not having the chance to oversee Foulds' development.

But after watching his former defensive protege John Stones, who Flitcroft worked with at Barnsley, develop into an England international at Everton, he believes Foulds' potential move is in the best interests of the young player.

"I want to be a manager that watches our home grown talent get in that first team and play in it," he said.

"But I think the way football is set up now, any youngster making his mark the bigger clubs come sniffing.

"That’s the way the system has been designed, I suppose.

"There is a real furore not to miss out on certain talent that is out there and he is one of the best young centre-halves around.

"From a business point of view I understand it.

"I was involved with John Stones going to Barnsley and if he had stayed at Barnsley he might not have had the career that he has had.

"There are three parties involved: the player, our club and the other club.

"You have always got to think about all three parties and when the deal is right for all three parties then sometimes they have got to move on to pastures new.

"He’s been fantastic while we have had him. He’s been a credit to the club and he’s a player I hold in great esteem.

"The fact I might not be able to work with him is just something that’s a matter of circumstance."

If Foulds moves on he will be the first player to be sold on from the academy since Flitcroft's appointment as manager in December, 2013.

During that time he has dismantled the club's former academy system, bringing it more closely under his control.

Ryan Kidd has been appointed as head of youth and led the Under-18s to the league title last season.

"Two years ago when I sat down with the chairman I promised him I would spend every hour of the day with my staff developing these players," he said.

"It makes up for a lot of hard graft in the academy, bringing Ryan in and upsetting and breaking up the old academy.

"It makes that all worthwhile when you see someone come through and progress to possibly the club he (Foulds) is going to.

"He will go out of the building if all parties are happy.

"Now they have made the bid(s) and now it’s where it is it is important we do the right thing for the football club.

"We are not there yet, but we are certainly quite far down the road."

Flitcroft's next act, if a deal for Foulds can be reached, will be to bring in defensive cover on loan.

With Keil O'Brien injured, the 17-year-old has been the club's only central defender on the bench during the first few months of the campaign.

Utility player Reece Brown proved in Tuesday night's defeat to Morecambe that he can also do a job in defence, and Flitcroft said he would not be rushed into adding to his squad.

"I will wait for the right one," he said. "We have got to bring the right characters to the club. We are on a rhythm of work.

"I have worked really hard in bringing the right characters to the football club.

"A lot is made of the Moneyball situation and we have got a DNA profile of what we are after for each position.

"But where we try to get it right is that we try to bring in people of the right character and with the right substance.

"There’s a lot of opportunities and players out there that we could look at but we have just got to make sure we get the right one in."