Dan Plumley

Thu 8 June 2023 17:10, UK

We’re delighted to welcome football finance expert Dr Daniel Plumley as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Everton...

Dan Plumley has insisted that any takeover price at Everton would need to be followed with stadium and transfer costs hanging over your head.

777 Partners were said to be close to a £600million takeover of the Toffees, but debt costs for the new stadium would need to have gone over £100million on top of that, it emerged [Daily Mail].

Plumley admitted it was the same at Manchester United, although the cost is in the billions, with investors looking to come down on values, not see them rise after takeovers.

“That’s the issue,” he exclusively told Goodison News.

“It’s not just the takeover price, it’s the investment you’ve got to put in. We’ve seen the same thing way higher up the scale with the Manchester United takeover, it’s £5-6billion, but you’ve got to put up to £2billion into Old Trafford.

“It starts to add up and it would be the same for Everton, you’ve got to pay the takeover price, but you also have to deal with the stadium which has value in the long run, but is also a cost hanging over you right now.

“You’ve got to look at the squad as that would be on the agenda of the manager and not being in this position next year. It quickly becomes more than the takeover price that you’re putting in and if the value asking price of the club is £600million, you’re not going to start there and work up, you’re going to look to come down on the valuation.”

With the clear complications in play over a full takeover of the club at this moment, it is no surprise to see Farhad Moshiri closing in on investment instead from MSP Sports Capital.

The Athletic have shared that money is already being pumped into the Bramley-Moore Dock stadium, with that the best course of action right now, over a takeover.

It is certainly something to watch in the future at Everton, though.