Everton have endured a torrid campaign thus far, and despite their performances on the pitch far outweighing that of the previous two years, they still remain in a relegation battle.
However, for Sean Dyche and his players at least, that is through no fault of their own.
They are being hamstrung by years of failure from the top of the club, with their financial recklessness dooming the Toffees to this period of abject failure.
Although there is certainly an element of guilt, the Premier League are also to blame for this downward spiral for their inability to govern those out of control. Now, their random and largely baseless punishments only further condemn them to misery.
And yet, that is not the worst thing they have done to this club…
What are the Premier League doing to Everton?
With a 12-point deduction their initial recommendation, and the first independent commission settling on ten points, at last a somewhat reasonable conclusion was reached, with a six-point deduction the final decision.
It still felt somewhat harsh, but given it propelled them five points clear of the drop, it was a welcome sight.
However, the division remains a much-maligned institution on Merseyside, who have every right to be furious regarding the nature of their takeover too.
777 Partners struck a deal with Farhad Moshiri back in September, and are yet to hear back any results.
And whilst this marks a frustration for the Miami-based firm, the club itself have still managed to become reliant on a party with no official affiliation with the club yet.
This is the doing of the Premier League, who continue to offer no conclusion which in turn allows 777 Partner to tighten their stranglehold on Everton.
777 Partners should not be allowed to takeover
As aforementioned, those loans have been mounting for months now, and with each new one this shady organisation have mounted more problems onto the Toffees’ future.
Those fees recently reached £180m back in February, and despite promises that they would no longer be injecting cash into the club, they have already broken such a suggestion before.
It is that unpredictability and lack of trust that should further worry Evertonians, with 777 Partners having garnered a rather worrying reputation as questionable operators.
The manner in which they made their fortune, through Settled Structured Annuities, has drawn criticism, and through not paying players at their other clubs and seeing their credit rating downgraded, further worries are piled up.
Not to mention that the reported source of their funding, A-Cap, is another avenue that has been closed for them.
By allowing Everton to become reliant on 777 Partners, the Premier League have doomed Everton to a fate potentially far worse than any points deduction.
After all, the short-term repercussions of that decision do not even come close to the long-term damage this takeover might do.
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