Andy Burnham outraged at Everton points deduction over ‘technical breach’ amid pandemic and conflict
Andy Burnham has called into question the fairness of the 10-point punishment meted out to Everton for what he calls a “technical breach of the rules”.
The Mayor of Greater Manchester reacted on Twitter after the penalty was imposed on 17 November to ask “how is this fair?” when the sanction for going into administration is only nine points.
The Toffees supporter [Daily Mail] fully backed the clubs plans to appeal the decision as he expressed his outrage around the circumstances.
Burnham wrote: “Premier League sanction for going into administration: 9 points.
“Premier League sanction for a technical breach of the rules when building a new stadium in the midst of a pandemic/conflict: 10 points.
“How is this fair?
“Everton [100%] right to appeal.”
Grey areas
It would be wrong to suggest that everything has been entirely in order at Goodison Park through the period in question, and those in charge at the time deserve criticism for getting the club into this position.
But there are enough external factors that could hardly have been legislated for, as well as an apparent willingness to cooperate with the Premier League in recent seasons, to serve as pretty compelling mitigation.
Yet it doesn’t seem like much of that has been taken into account in a truly meaningful way when the punishment handed down is the largest points deduction in English top flight history.
Clearly Everton will feel extremely hard done by in the circumstances, while rival clubs who feel they have suffered at the Toffees’ hands won’t care, but when even apparently neutral clubs are taken aback by the punishment [Independent, 17 November] it feels like the response has gone overboard.
While there is a belief that the points deduction will come down on appeal it has already opened the door to potentially more damaging knock-on effects in terms of legal claims from the likes of Burnley, Leeds and Leicester.
Perhaps it is indeed the fault of Farhad Moshiri and the previous board that they put the club in a position where events such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine would hit Everton particularly hard.
But it is hard to argue that the Toffees have been gaining much of an advantage out of anything that they have done, or has happened outside their control, for some time now.
In other Everton news, the club may be about to receive a game-changer on the pitch pending high-level talks.