Alisher Usmanov asked Frank Lampard one question in Everton interview
Frank Lampard was asked one question by Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov in his Everton interview despite not holding a role at the club, according to The Telegraph.
It is believed that Toffees’ owner Farhad Moshiri had been on a zoom call with the businessman, who has ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, when Lampard entered the room for his interview.
Lampard duefully answered the question posed to him by Usmanov but the Russian does not hold any position at the club with relations purely on a commercial level.
“Everton insist that Moshiri had been concluding a Zoom call with his associate Usmanov, that any interaction would have been conversational and that the 68-year-old was not part of the process to interview or appoint Lampard,” The Telegraph report.
He has since been sanctioned by the European Union and had assets frozen for his closeness with Putin [The Telegraph] and this latest development isn’t good news for Everton.
Nightmare
This is a very difficult situation to be in and the club can only really escape through one exit.
They have to cut their ties with Usmanov’s company USM Holdings to prevent any protests against their involvement despite Moshiri being the company’s chairman.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is massively denting any sporting organisations with Russian involvement and Everton are just one of those affected.
You have to wonder what full-back Vitaliy Mykolenko is thinking right now given he has only recently signed for the club who have a shareholder linked to Putin as he invades his homeland.
He incredibly bravely made himself available for the game against Manchester City on Saturday but he may not fancy playing for the club with such a person providing the funds.
It’s a dark hole to find themselves in but there is a way out and they have to take it as soon as possible.
In other Everton news, the Toffees are in the hunt to sign this midfield maestro who is tearing it up in the MLS.