Everton have been hit with an unprecedented 10-point penalty after being found to have “taken chances” with the Premier League’s financial rules.
An independent commission found the club’s desire to improve their on-pitch performance had resulted in them acting “irresponsibly” and exceeding permitted losses under the league’s profitability and sustainability rules (PSR).
The points deduction drops Everton to 19th in the table and leaves major question marks over whether a sale of the club by current owner Farhad Moshiri to an American investment firm, 777 Partners, will proceed.
The club immediately indicated their intention to appeal against the sanction. It is understood the appeal will be heard during the course of the current season.
Everton could also now face compensation claims against them over the case.
The Premier League published a commission judgement from May which granted five clubs – Leeds, Nottingham Forest, Southampton, Leicester and Burnley – 28 days from Friday to inform the commission of their intention to pursue a compensation claim.
None of those clubs have so far commented on this matter.
The Premier League’s PSR permit losses of £105million over a three-year period. Everton’s losses up to 2021-22 were found to be £124.5million, exceeding the limit by £19.5million even accounting for allowances made for the Covid-19 pandemic.
The club put forward various items they felt should be excluded from the PSR calculation, including interest costs related to the construction of their new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock, the portion of the club’s transfer levy related to youth development and the £10m lost on the club’s decision not to seek damages against a player whose contract was terminated in 2021.
Everton also argued that a depressed summer transfer market in 2020 owing to Covid-19 reduced the revenue they would have earned from player sales. They also said they had lost out on a £200m stadium naming rights deal with USM as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent sanctions imposed by the British Government. USM is a conglomerate whose single largest stakeholder is Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov.
However, the commission concluded: “The cause of Everton’s PSR difficulties was the fact that it overspent (largely on its purchase of new players and its inability to sell other players), and because it finished lower in the league than it had projected in FY 2022 (16th against the projected 6th – causing a loss of expected income of c.£21 million).
“Everton’s understandable desire to improve its on-pitch performance (to replace the non-existent midfield, as Mr Moshiri put it in evidence) led it to take chances with its PSR position: those chances resulted in it exceeding the £105 million threshold by £19.5 million.
“The position that Everton finds itself in is of its own making – it is Everton’s responsibility to ensure that it complies with the PSR regime. The excess over the threshold is significant. The consequence is that Everton’s culpability is great.
“We take into account the fact that Everton’s PSR trend over the relevant four years is positive, but cannot ignore the fact that the failure to comply with the PSR 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.
“The reality is that Everton failed to manage its finances so as to operate within the generous threshold of £105m. Its mismanagement led to that threshold being exceeded by £19.5million.
“This was a serious breach that requires a significant penalty.”
The commission concluded that a sporting sanction was the only option for a club owned by a billionaire like Moshiri.
“A financial penalty for a club that enjoys the support of a wealthy owner is not a sufficient penalty,” the commission’s written reasons stated.
“We agree with the Premier League that the requirements of punishment, deterrence, vindication of compliant clubs, and the protection of the integrity of the sport demand a sporting sanction in the form of a points deduction. The issue is not the form of sanction, but its extent.”
The written reasons show Everton’s position was that any sanction imposed by the commission should be financial rather than sporting in nature, but said if it had to be a sporting sanction then a transfer ban would be more appropriate than a points deduction.
The club said in a statement: “Everton Football Club is both shocked and disappointed by the ruling of the Premier League’s commission.
“The club believes that the commission has imposed a wholly disproportionate and unjust sporting sanction.
“The club has already communicated its intention to appeal the decision to the Premier League. The appeal process will now commence and the club’s case will be heard by an Appeal Board appointed pursuant to the Premier League’s rules in due course.
“Everton maintains that it has been open and transparent in the information it has provided to the Premier League and that it has always respected the integrity of the process.
“The club does not recognise the finding that it failed to act with the utmost good faith and it does not understand this to have been an allegation made by the Premier League during the course of proceedings.
“Both the harshness and severity of the sanction imposed by the commission are neither a fair nor a reasonable reflection of the evidence submitted.
“The club will also monitor with great interest the decisions made in any other cases concerning the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules.”
Portsmouth and Middlesbrough are the only other clubs to have been docked points in Premier League history. Pompey were hit with a 10-point sanction in March 2010 after entering administration while Boro’s three-point penalty in January 1997 related to a short-notice match postponement the previous month. Both clubs were relegated at the end of the season.
Mona, Hillel kickstart 2024 Canopy Insurance/JISA Alberga Cup season quest with impressive victories
The 2023 Canopy Insurance/JISA Under-12 Alberga Cup finalists, Mona Preparatory and Hillel Academy kickstarted their quest for victory on Saturday when they played opening matches against St. Hughs Preparatory and American International School of Kingston (AISK) at the National Water Commission’s (NWC) Mona field and the AISK field respectively. The 2023 Cup finalists were 2 of 17 matches played across 5 zones set for both Kingston & St. Catherine.
Mona, who played in Zone 4, won their opener against St. Hugh’s and were in high spirits as they believe they have a chance to repeat history. Coached by Vivian Nelson they clocked 11-0; while unsure if his team is ready, he is looking forward to them playing some good football.
"I’m not sure if we’re ready but the season [already] started so we’ll just play. At 11-0, they’re just showing that they picked up from where they left off so, it was a good game, the first game; we just want to see where they are after the pre-season, so [it] never really looked bad, the playing is okay, but I think as we go along we expect some improvement.”
Nelson said that compared to last year, it’s more or less the same results from the first match.
“If we judge by that [match] then, the season is the same; we’re hoping to get there [on the top spot] again. We have an ongoing program plus some of these youngsters play football right round [the year] so when they’re not with me they’re with the Dare to Dream Football Academy; we put in some work in pre-season; expect youngsters [to be] youngsters and score. [But] I’m looking at how they play the position, their discipline and how they control the game.
Noting that while they’re playing for victory, he’s not looking at teams now, he’s focused on his team to see where the season takes them, whilst praising his competent returning players.
Their opening opponent’s coach, Pryce of St. Hughs Prep believes they can get better.
“We have a fairly young team this year, a group of grade 5 boys coming out to play some really nice football, they were up against the defending champions which is very good and for me they performed the best they could.” said Pryce.
“The boys are growing, they are coming along, they have a lot more experience to gain so the more they play, the better they’ll get over the years. They’re just here to put on a good show for themselves this year and get some confidence going into next year’s season. They just need to play faster and a bit more confident.”
In another St. Andrew match, 2023 finalist Hillel, the Zone 2 favorite, took home the gold with a 7-2 score at the end of the match to secure their move to the next round. While both teams were tied at halftime, Hillel took things up a notch in the second half to score 5 more points.
“It was our first game and we just wanted to see how the boys would play real competitively, and they did well; apart from a few mistakes we got back in our game in the second half and scored some goals, tried to get the benchers in and get some experience for the new ones but all in all, we have more work to do because I’m quite sure there are better teams out there to play; we’re looking forward to that; we need the challenge to ensure our team is ready.” said coach Nicholas Locke of Hillel Academy.
Coach-nominated Players of the Match for the 2024 season’s opener included St. Hugh’s James Whittingham and Hillel’s Jace Lowe.
Other matches played in Saturday’s season opener included: Lannaman’s Prep VS Mount Alvernia Prep (2-0), Creative Kids VS Ardenne Prep (0-1), Emmanuel Christian Academy VS Portmore Missionary Prep (8-0) and Sts. Peter and Paul VS Our Lady of the Angels Prep (11-0).
Skinner compares 'immense and intense' Terland to Haaland
Erling Haaland may have hit unprecedented heights for Manchester City but Marc Skinner believes Manchester United have a similar talisman in Elisabeth Terland.
United boss Skinner likened Women's Super League star Terland to City's Premier League hero Haaland after the Norwegian scored twice in Sunday's 3-0 victory over Tottenham.
That marked her first two goals for United since joining from Brighton, having first blasted a volley home before looping another header over Becky Spencer.
Asked to describe Terland, Skinner said: "Intense in a good way. She is a person who is always focused, she doesn't dip off her focus whether it's pressing or whatever the task is, she's all in.
"I think she knows Haaland personally and I don't want to compare the two but the immense and intense action of both of them, that's how she performs."
Terland's heroics helped to ensure United's 100% record in the WSL this season stayed intact, with three wins and three clean sheets from three games.
The former Brighton forward, who found the net 13 times in the league last season, appeared all over the place against Spurs, attempting a game-high five shots with three of those on target.
Her two goals came from an expected goals tally of just 0.65, though, suggesting superior finishing from lower quality chances, something that will delight Skinner.
"I came to a club that wants to achieve big things. I know playing in a better team will make me better," Terland told Sky Sports.
"Part of my job is to score goals, it is great to get the first one for the club. A good win and I am proud of the team."
United finished fifth last campaign and lacked a regular scorer, with Nikita Parris finishing the term as the club's top scorer in the WSL with only eight goals.
Skinner knows the tide may now turn, however, with Terland firing up top.
"I just think she's an incredible talent," Skinner added.
"The beauty of her is I think she slows the moment and sees the opportunity under the most immense pressure."
Ancelotti influence key for Endrick development, say Dida and Cafu
Carlo Ancelotti's player management can turn Real Madrid's Endrick into a "great player", according to Brazil's World Cup winners Dida and Cafu.
Endrick arrived in the Spanish capital from Palmeiras in July in a deal reportedly worth €60million, signing a six-year deal with the 15-time Champions League winners.
The 17-year-old has scored two goals in nine appearances across all competitions this season, though he has only featured for 107 minutes across those games.
But Ancelotti has shown his faith in young players during his tenure with Los Blancos, with the likes of Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo all developing under his stewardship.
Cafu, who made 119 appearances for Milan under Ancelotti, believes Endrick has the right man to guide him through the early stages of his promising career.
"Ancelotti is a great coach, and he is really good at developing young players," Cafu told Stats Perform at Festival dello Sport in Trento, Italy.
"He's really good at managing them, he understands them and knows when it's the right time for them to play or when they need to stay on the bench.
"For someone like him he will be like a father who will give the right advice."
It was a sentiment echoed by Cafu's former Milan team-mate Dida, who hopes he can become an important player for Brazil ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
"We all know Carlo [Ancelotti], he knows how to manage all the champions," Dida added.
"He knows how to make these kids grow even if they are already in an important team.
"And that is certainly something very nice for [Endrick], we hope he does well because he is a Brazilian who will surely do well with the [Brazil] national team.
"I hope that our national team always works with this type of players and we hope that Carlo, as always, does his job."
Endrick was picked for the Brazil national team for the first time in November 2023, becoming the youngest male player to secure a senior call-up since Ronaldo Nazario in 1994.
He netted his first goal for his national side in a 1-0 win over England at Wembley back in March this year, scoring again three days later in an entertaining draw with Spain.
Endrick was also part of Dorival Junior's squad for the Copa America.
After three substitute appearances in the group stage, he made his first start for Brazil, replacing Vinícius who was suspended for their quarter-final against Uruguay.
However, he struggled during the contest, completing just one pass during the match, from kick-off, as they crashed out on penalties to Marcelo Bielsa's side.
Though showing only glimpses of what he can become, Cafu believes the sky is the limit for Endrick.
"Endrick can become a great player. He's young and has enormous potential and can grow a lot," Cafu concluded. "With Ancelotti as a manager, I'm sure he can become a top player."
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