Everton warned of ‘fear’ in 777 Partners takeover as money source questioned

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It made little sense when Everton were deducted ten points.

That was a notion many sections of the media agreed with, yet it was the Premier League’s final ruling. Ten points. The most in the entire 135-year history of the English top flight. For a £19m overspend.

Whilst the scale of the punishment did not quite fit the crime committed, few could have grievances with the guilty verdict given the club themselves had pleaded as such.

The transparency was supposed to aid their case, but instead, it had been turned and used against them.

Fans would implore those making such decisions to see reason, and whilst the appeal process rumbles on, it is a decision that has been enacted.

Frustratingly, especially after the European Super League debacle and the pitiful sanction those six sides were handed, it is the supporters who have been punished with the ruling.

They had foreseen such an event, and in turn protested against it. And yet, Farhad Moshiri could still prove to be the lesser of two evils, given the shady nature of 777 Partners’ proposed takeover.

What’s the latest on 777 Partners’ takeover of Everton?

Having agreed a deal with the Iranian billionaire back in September, the Miami-based firms still await the outcome of the Premier League’s fitness test for new owners.

However, finance expert Kieran Maguire has sought to offer an update in the meantime, speaking on The Price of Football podcast.

He would note: ‘777 themselves are borrowing money from a company called A-Cap, and A-Cap are normally lending at 20%. Well that’s credit card rates. That is not good at all, so what happens if the Premier League comes to the conclusion that it doesn’t have enough faith in 777 as prospective owners?

‘Does 777 then say ‘Right, well we’re throwing our toys out of the pram and we’re going to take our money back,’ because if so then there’s an issue and under those circumstances I think the fear would be, well if Everton can’t pay those debts, what’s the next step?

‘We start to get into uncomfortable territory, nobody wants to see a club going into administration. Is Farhad Moshiri now going to find the money? There’s question marks still about his historic close relationship with relationship with Alisher Usmanov, who is clearly a very wealthy person in his own right.

‘Just as Everton are doing fantastically well on the pitch, and the fans are united which is good, then you’ve got this sort of irritant in the background.’

Is 777 Partners’ Everton takeover going to go through?

 It is seemingly an impossible task to predict what the Premier League might do, given how harshly they have already come down once on Sean Dyche’s club.

Few expected them to administer such a disproportionate sanction, but they did so with confidence in their findings.

So, to predict the outcome of their latest big decision, which could have huge ramifications for Everton, is an impossible task.

One report suggested that the takeover had nearly fallen through, just before another source suggested anything could happen.

However, with Maguire’s notion, fans might be hesitant to rush Moshiri out the door too quickly, given how underhanded the alternative seems to be.