A recent change at the Everton Finch Farm training facility has been a cause of some consternation.
Scouts and visitors to the Everton training complex have been taken aback by a recent alteration to the catering services.
As reported by The Daily Mail, “eyebrows were raised” during an under-18s match at Finch Farm when scouts were informed that they would now have to pay £1 for a cup of tea or coffee.
Across the Premier League and Football League, it is common practise for clubs to provide complimentary beverages.
At Everton now, though, they will accept cash or card payments in exchange for a hot drink.
One astonished scout said, “I know times are hard but we weren’t expecting this.”
No excuse for penny-pinching change at Everton
Everton are currently in a tough spot financially. However, they are still an institution routinely dealing with monetary sums and transactions in the millions. Such a miserly change as denying scouts free hot drinks will not make an impact on the Toffees’ bottom line. It is therefore hard to fathom the rationale behind making such a call to break from tradition.
Of course, in the grand scheme of things, this is an extremely minor issue. After all, a change of ownership looks to be on the cards, and Sean Dyche will still be fearing that his side will be dragged into a relegation battle.
However, it is also in the club’s best interest to keep scouts and visitors to Finch Farm happy. A lot of these talent-spotters will be keen to return to places where they feel valued and looked after, given they spend so much of their working lives on the road and away from home.
In any case, paying £1 for a cup of tea or coffee will be unimportant to a scout on the day that they discover one of football’s next superstars.
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