Everton could face further nine-point deduction if Burnley, Leicester, Leeds are successful with their £300m compensation claim. Everton’s prospective buyers 777Partners had committed to providing £20 million per month to support the club’s running costs during the Premier League’s assessment of their takeover bid. However, they may not be willing to cover a compensation cost reaching tens of millions of pounds. The deal between Farhad Moshiri and 777 in September includes clauses reducing the sale price significantly if Everton is instructed to pay compensation or faces relegation. Everton could face further nine-point deduction – Getty image Their current financial constraints mean Everton could struggle to settle the huge compensation bill, and could result to an automatic nine-point reduction, a scenario said to have introduced by the Premier League in 2004. According to Mail Sports, the compensation claim initiated by Burnley, Leicester and Leeds, could amount to £100 million each, based on the loss of Premier League income during seasons when Everton overspent. If Everton fails to address these challenges, it could become the third club in Premier League history to suffer points deductions. They will follow Middlesbrough, who suffered such fate in 1997 and Portsmouth in 2010. Both teams were also subsequently relegated.
Chelsea, Manchester City fear relegation after historic point deduction for Everton
Chelsea and Manchester City fear relegation after Everton’s historic ten-point deduction for breaching Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules. Everton’s sanction has raised concerns from other clubs in the Premier League who are under investigation for similar offenses. UK legal sports experts have suggested that if found guilty, both Manchester City, who faced 115 FFP charges in January, and Chelsea, currently under investigation for transfers during Roman Abramovich’s tenure, could potentially face relegation. Stefan Borson, a popular sports lawyer said, “Ten points for Everton feels harsh for a straightforward Financial Fair Play breach. Chelsea and Manchester City managers – Getty image “But it reinforces that sanctions against City and now Chelsea will be potentially relegation-inducing,” The Sun UK reported. Manchester City have in the past, consistently denied all allegations on the case and fielded top legal representatives. Chelsea, on the other hand, disclosed issues of illegal financial dealings from Abramovich’s era and are awaiting the outcome of investigations into the alleged offenses that span over multiple years. Meanwhile, the three-man commission leading Everton’s case noted the gravity of the breach. They said that Everton had an irresponsible management of finances and failed to operate within the agreed threshold. “Everton’s culpability is great. This was a serious breach that requires a significant penalty. “We cannot ignore the fact that the failure to comply with the regime was the result of Everton irresponsibly taking a chance that things would turn out positively. “Further, Everton was less than frank in its dealings with the Premier League over the stadium interest issue. “Everton failed to manage its finances so as to operate within the generous threshold,” they added. Everton’s interim chief Colin Chong on the other hand, has vowed that the club will appeal the decision, stating it’s a verdict that affects the club, just as it affects it fans.
Juventus jump to third place after reversal of 15 points deduction decision
The decision to deduct 15 points from Juventus in Serie A was reversed by Italy’s highest sporting court on Thursday, April 20. The Old Lady was handed a 15-points deduction after an investigation into the club’s past transfer dealings spanning two years from 2019 to 2021 by Italian football’s governing body (FIGC). Juventus were accused of fixing their balance sheets by artificial gains of around 60m euros from club transfers, charges they were found guilty of by the FIGC’s appeals court in January. The club, however, denied any wrongdoing and took its case to a tribunal at the Olympic Committee, Italy’s highest sporting court. However, the spectre of sanction has not disappeared completely as the sporting court ruled that the case should be re-examined. The club has now moved from seventh to third in Serie A, but could still be punished at a later date when a new hearing is held. The long bans given to former chairman Andrea Agnelli, ex-CEO Maurizio Arrivabene, and sporting directors Federico Cherubini and Fabio Paratici were upheld. Former player and director Pavel Nedved, Paolo Garimberti, and Enrico Vellano were successful with their appeals. The Sports Guarantee Board now has a month to publish the reasoning behind its ruling, only after which the FIGC court can then reassess the case, meaning the affair will likely drag on until the end of the season. With eight games to go in the season, AC Milan has been knocked out of the Champions League places by Juve while Roma drop to fourth.