Everton face having to go cap in hand to consortium they have already REJECTED in embarrassing takeover U-turn
EVERTON’S fading hopes of rescue from potential financial disaster looks set to lay in the hands of a consortium the club REJECTED last year.
The under-pressure Toffees owner Farhad Moshiri is facing having to go cap in hand to New York-based MSP Sports Capital after the reality of the doomed offer from his preferred bidders became clear.
Moshiri has been desperate to complete the planned £550million deal he agreed with troubled 777 Partners last September.
But Prem bosses have refused to ratify the agreement over worries the Miami-based company does not have the cash to meet its obligations.
Now, 777 Partners and boss Josh Wander have been hit by a welter of legal actions in the US and Europe, with the possibility of being stripped of their ownership of Belgian club Standard Liege next week.
It means Moshiri, who has ignored calls from fans to seek a new option as the club floats towards the financial rocks, may be forced to accept a reduced offer to avoid administration.
Moshiri, long term ally of sanctioned Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov, appears to have belatedly realised the 777 deal is dead in the water.
And once he ends those negotiations his only realistic way out is to get a rumoured new offer from MSP — told they were not wanted last year.
MSP, headed by Jahm Najafi — vice-chairman of the McLaren F1 team and the NBA’s Phoenix Suns — was in talks over taking a 25 per cent stake in the Toffees in March 2023.
That proposed deal fell through after Rights and Media Funding — which lent £225m to the Merseysiders — objected over security fears.
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MSP are owed £160m, with 777 Partners due £192m.
It is understood that MSP will step in if a takeover is viable.
If they don’t, the club could go into administration with a nine-point Prem penalty.
Everton currently sit 15th in the Premier League table, having docked eight points this season across two separate charges.
THE PSR STATE OF PLAY
Where clubs in danger stand...
Everton
Initial 10 point deduction for 2021-22 breaches reduced to six points on appeal. Now deducted a further two points.
Manchester City
Etihad club emphatically denies the 115 allegations laid against them in February 2023. The lengthy Commission case has been scheduled to start in October or November but a final decision is not expected until March or April 2025.
Chelsea
Blues chiefs flagged up illicit payments made to agents and others during the Roman Abramovich era. Fined £8.6m by Uefa but still to be formally charged by the Prem despite an ongoing investigation.
Leicester
Foxes breached Prem PSR loss limits last season but did not have to report their 2022-23 accounts until this month because of their relegation. That puts the timetable back and means that they will probably face a Prem points deduction next term.