Kieran Maguire shares Everton second FFP charge admission as Premier League sets benchmark
The independent commission has recommended any further financial fair play breaches should result in points deductions amid the second charge aimed at Everton, according to Kieran Maguire.
Speaking on The Price of Football podcast on Thursday (29 February), the football finance expert said it’s “pointless” having financial penalties if you’re dealing with billionaires and sovereign wealth funds as it wouldn’t be an issue for the the likes of Saudi Arabia’s PIF, which owns Newcastle United.
He believes a benchmark has now been set at six points after the Toffees saw their 10-point deduction reduced by four points, but that Nottingham Forest could claim their penalty should be lower than that if they are found to have breached the spending rules by less than the Blues.
He added that the Merseysiders could argue that there’a double jeopardy in place for their second charge and that they could potentially have a very good case to suggest a potential points deduction is reduced by two-thirds as they await to hear what the outcome will be at Goodison Park.
“Another thing that came out from this second report, which is intriguing, is that the commission said going forwards points deductions should always be the sanction for breaches of financial fair play,” said Maguire.
“That is something that not only applies to Everton, but will apply to further cases going forward. If you’re going to apply financial fair play, it’s pointless having financial penalties if you’re dealing with not just billionaires but beyond billionaires, sovereign wealth funds. If you fine the PIF £100million, it’s not an issue for them.
“If Forest are found guilty, they will get a points deduction. What’s the start and end point of that? I think we now have a benchmark of six points. It could be that Forest’s advisers will say ‘well, if we exceeded the limit by less than £20million with Everton, it should be lower than that’.
“In Everton’s second case, I would imagine they’ll be saying ‘there’s double jeopardy because we’ve got an overlap of two years, so if we’re found guilty, there’s a very good case for saying this is the points deduction, reduce that by two-thirds.”
Complicated issue regarding Everton second charge
It’s been an extremely complicated process understanding what the charges are and the ramifications each of the clubs could be facing.
Although Everton received some good news that their 10-point reduction had been reduced to six on 26 February, all of the focus is now on what the outcome will be of their second charge.
If they were to be handed another points deduction this season, then that would land them back in trouble again in their fight to remain in the Premier League.
There will also be fears amongst the Nottingham Forest fans as they would also find themselves in deep trouble if they were to have some points taken away.
The whole process has ruined the season to a degree for many clubs as it’s been poorly handled by the Premier League after the situation has dragged on for months.
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