Journalist shares Everton ‘FFP danger’ after what 777 Partners chief said
Clubs like Everton are operating in “very narrow parameters” when it comes to financial fair play (FFP), according to Chris Beesley.
Writing on the Liverpool Echo website on Thursday (16 November), the journalist highlighted a quote from 777 Partners’ director of football analytics Mladen Sormaz, where he said Premier League sides like the Toffees are only “one failed £20million transfer” away from “FFP danger”, to illustrate the challenges posed in trying to take the club forward.
But Beesley added that the objective for the Blues is to pool every possible piece of information and insight together to “drastically reduce the chances of such mistakes”.
“The expectations are less at the English top flight’s smaller outfits so they can get things wrong without catastrophic consequences to the economic side of the club and they can even yo-yo between the two top divisions like Burnley did during their early years under Dyche,” said Beesley.
“On the flip side, the monied elite can afford to lavish big fees and wages on acquisitions who don’t always hit the heights expected of them.
“However, those in the middle like Everton, hoping to become upwardly mobile, are operating in very narrow parameters and as Sormaz admits, they can be only “one failed £20million transfer” away from FFP danger.
“The objective of course is to be able to pool every possible piece of information and insight together to drastically reduce the chances of such mistakes.”
Walking a tightrope
There are a number of challenges that FFP imposes on Premier League clubs, but they are also in place to ensure that no unnecessary – and potentially damaging – risks are taken.
There are several sides that are trying to push themselves into a higher bracket in the league as they look to compete for the European places on a regular basis.
But for those teams where the money isn’t free-flowing and the income isn’t as high as the clubs they are competing against, more methodical processes are required to try and bridge the gap.
The Toffees are in a position where the past few years simply haven’t been good enough for a club of their stature and they should be challenging much higher up in the table.
With the ongoing financial issues surrounding the Blues and unknowns regarding the potential takeover of 777 Partners, there is work going on behind the scenes to try and improve matters from an analytical perspective to make up for the lack of spending power.
Whether that will help propel them into that next bracket of clubs is anyone’s guess, but it is a sensible approach to try and combat the problems they are facing.
In other Everton news, a BBC pundit wanted one “sensational” Toffees man to join another Premier League club.