‘Disgusting’ FFP update ‘would be absolutely catastrophic’ for Everton

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Everton are a club seldom used to positivity, with a fanbase depressingly accustomed to mediocrity after decades of disappointment.

There are huge sections of the fanbase who have known nothing but inferiority, whilst the older audience bemoans the modern-day squad for failing to live up to the huge success they saw back in their youth.

However, every Evertonian has come together to bemoan the misuse of their precious finances over the last six years, ever since Farhad Moshiri took over the club.

It marked their big opportunity to return to the golden years of old, and one which was royally squandered by the misinformed Iranian. As such, they instead find themselves in a Financial Fair Play hole, having somehow regressed.

And yet, former Everton ace Michael Ball has ridiculed the suggestion of a points deduction, which is the reported punishment the Premier League seeks, writing for the Liverpool ECHO: ‘That the Premier League are now, allegedly, pushing for a points deduction of 12 points, I find it disgusting.

‘Something we spoke about when the European Super League came about was who are you actually punishing with these sanctions? It’s the fans who will be hit hardest.

‘As a player, you can do something about losing 12 points. It’s down to you to have that siege mentality to try and turn things around on the pitch. If Everton were to be docked 12 points, in our current situation, it would be absolutely catastrophic. It is basically relegation.’

Why might Everton have points deducted?

The proposed sanction has come amidst allegations that the club has broken profit and sustainability rules, which has been forwarded to an independent commission to find a solution.

However, it is a charge that does hold some weight, given the Toffees have posted losses of £430m.

For context, profit and sustainability rules allow clubs to lose a maximum of £105m over a three-year period, so that figure is an exorbitant flouting of such a statute.

Fortunately, with the Premier League pushing for that harsh sanction which would be a landmark ruling, and an uncharacteristically harsh one at that, they will play no part in the outcome of the trial. It is the independent commission, and only the independent commission, who can come to the final decision.

For all the misery that such a gruelling and drawn-out case has brought, Everton remain staunch in their position. They deny all allegations and plan to ‘robustly defend’ such a notion.

If anything, this continued witch hunt against the Merseyside club has only added to fans’ discontent with the division, forging a closer bond between fans and their club, and creating the siege mentality needed to overcome such a consistent tidal wave of attacks from the outside.