Dan Friedkin has made critical phone call in last 24 hours as £451m Everton takeover issue emerges
With the sun finally setting on the Farhad Moshiri era, Everton supporters are daring to dream of a revolution under heir apparent Dan Friedkin. Moshiri’s...
With the sun finally setting on the Farhad Moshiri era, Everton supporters are daring to dream of a revolution under heir apparent Dan Friedkin.
Moshiri’s reign was characterised initially by lavish spending on glamour signings then, after Kazakh billionaire Alisher Usmanov was forced to pull out and the owner’s funds dried up, constant PSR anxiety.
The Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules in their current form limit clubs to losing £105m over a rolling three-year assessment window, a threshold Everton exceeded in 2021-22 and 2022-23.
They were subsequently issued with two separate points deductions, making the first club since the inception of Financial Fair Play well over a decade ago to be punished for a breach.
The legacy of their profligacy in the transfer market might not be finalised just yet too.
Everton are awaiting a third PSR hearing relating to their capitalisation of interest on loans taken out to fund the construction of their Bramley Moore Dock stadium.
With Everton’s spending limited and faith in the C-suite eroded, problems on the pitch inevitably followed on the pitch, with Everton only narrowly avoiding relegation twice in as many years.
This season, Sean Dyche has failed to inspire his troop this season and Everton are currently 16th in the Premier League following Saturday’s insipid 0-0 draw at a powder-puff West Ham side.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 11 |  BrentfordBrentford | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 22 | 22 | 0 | 16 |
| 12 |  B’mouthBournemouth | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 15 |
| 13 |  Man UtdManchester United | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 15 |
| 14 |  West HamWest Ham | 11 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 13 | 19 | -6 | 12 |
| 15 |  LeicesterLeicester | 11 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 14 | 21 | -7 | 10 |
| 16 |  EvertonEverton | 11 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 10 | 17 | -7 | 10 |
| 17 |  IpswichIpswich | 11 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 22 | -10 | 8 |
| 18 |  Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace | 11 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 15 | -7 | 7 |
| 19 |  WolvesWolves | 11 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 16 | 27 | -11 | 6 |
| 20 |  SouthamptonSouthampton | 11 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 7 | 21 | -14 | 4 |
Friedkin’s takeover in the eyes of most supporters therefore cannot come soon enough.
But will the American billionaire bring the stability that the long-suffering Goodison Park faithful crave? Events in Rome, where Friedkin’s other football investment is situated, may give some indication.
- READ MORE: Everton’s Mario Balotelli talks disclosed as Farhad Moshiri ‘wanted to pull out his wallet’
Dan Friedkin’s Roma side in crisis as another manager sacked
Friedkin bought AS Roma for £532m four years ago.
Initially, the Hollywood financier’s reign went smoothly, with the 59-year-old endearing himself to fans by hiring Jose Mourinho and delivering the club’s first ever European trophy in the Conference League.
But the relationship between the owners and the supporters at the Stadio Olimpico took a nosedive earlier this year when the Friedkin regime sacked club legend Daniele De Rossi as manager.
Supporters reacted so negatively that Friedkin is reportedly considering selling a large stake in Roma to Saudi investors.
And things have gone from bad to worse in the Italian capital.
With Roma having won just one of their last six in Serie A, a 3-2 defeat to Bologna on Sunday proved to be the final straw for Ivan Juric.
The Croatian manager was at the helm for just 12 matches, with Friedkin reportedly sacking him just hours after the Bologna defeat via phone call.
Everton must address soft loans issue as 22 November deadline looms
Friedkin might have his work cut out at Roma at present but he does not have the luxury of devoting all of his time to turning the club around.
He is also juggling developments on Merseyside, where the Premier League and Financial Conduct Authority are carrying out their final checks ahead of the takeover.
The intricacies of the deal also need to be ironed out with Moshiri, with the British-Iranian businessman facing a final decision with regards to £431m in soft loans he has given the club.
Soft loans are interest-free loans from shareholders. For accounting purposes, Everton treat Moshiri’s soft loans as if they were equity investment.
Shareholder loans are under the microscope at present following Man City’s partly successful challenge to the Premier League’s APT rules (associated party transactions).
One outcome of the case has been to cause the Premier League to treat soft loans as a form of subsidy, which likely means that a commercial interest rate will be applied from now on for PSR purposes.
Everton, who incidentally gave evidence in City’s favour at the tribunal, have by far the highest soft loans in the Premier League.
Moshiri and Friedkin must now decide how to treat the loans as part of the takeover ahead of a Premier League vote on a redrafting of the rules governing soft loans on 22 November.
Speaking exclusively to TBR Football, Liverpool University football finance lecturer Kieran Maguire has forecasted that Everton’s soft loans could be converted into a new class of equity without voting rights.
That would avoid the problems that would follow a conversion to traditional equity, which would dilute the voting rights of the Everton Shareholders Association, who own around six per cent of the club.
- READ MORE: Saudi Pro League sides are showing interest in ‘fantastic’ Everton player ahead of January
Friedkin’s Everton in-tray: Survival, sponsorship, strategy
Premier League survival is by far the biggest priority for Friedkin once he is handed the keys to Everton.
In the Championship, Everton’s enterprise value would nosedive dramatically.
That in turn would mean that Friedkin would have paid massively over the odds in terms of the money he is committing to clearing Everton’s debts and potentially for paying Moshiri off.
But there are huge existential issues in play too, with the primary one of course being the imminent move to the new stadium at Bramley Moore Dock.
The stadium has not yet been christened, with Everton yet to announce a naming rights partner as part of the search that the club enlisted the Elevate Sports agency for several years ago.
Red Bull, Qatari Airways and Friedkin-connected Toyota have been mooted as potential sponsors.
While this is far from an exhaustive list, Friedkin finally will be tasked with implementing a new football vision for a club which currently lacks a defined sporting identity – or a ‘philosophy’, to use the buzzword.
Whether this future involves Sean Dyche, whose job is far from secure.
What's Your Reaction?
