By Joshua Stewart
EVERTON have been deducted 10 points by the Premier League, having been found to breach the League’s financial fair play rules.
The deduction sees them fall to 19th in the table with four points, only above Burnley in 20th on goal difference.
It is the biggest points deduction in Premier League history, with the previous highest amount being the nine points deducted from Portsmouth in 2010 when the club entered administration.
Everton have said they intend to appeal the decision.
The team from Liverpool were referred to a Independent Commission in March for an alleged breach of profit and sustainability rules.
In March this year, Everton posted a financial loss for a fifth consecutive year, having reported a £44.7m deficit in 2021-22.
Premier League clubs are permitted to lose a maximum of £105m over a three-year period and Everton have admitted to being in breach of the profit and sustainability rules for the period ending in 2021-22.
A five-day hearing in October saw the Commission find in favour of the Premier League that Everton sustained losses that amounted to £124.5m during that period.
Football finance expert Kieran Maguire spoke to Sky Sports about the announcement, saying; “It’s over a couple of accounting points over the new stadium.
They feel interest on money for the new stadium should be taken into account.
Everton feel they should have been given more consideration in the transfer market, taking into account Covid-19 and their inability to sell players.”
Everton have released a statement saying: “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 intent 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.
Everton cannot comment on this matter any further until the appeal process has concluded.”
