'Few raised eyebrows' - Kieran Maguire shares Textor takeover worry at Everton

Everton fans may have further concerns about the long-term stability of the club if John Textor completes a purchase of the club, according to Kieran Maguire.

The University of Liverpool’s football finance expert has discussed the potential Textor takeover on the Price of Football podcast [27 August], and admitted he has reservations over the American’s professionalism.

Textor had become the third party this summer to enter exclusivity talks with Farhad Moshiri in pursuit of acquiring his majority stake in the club, but chances of a deal being completed are seemingly slim [The Esk, 26 August].

Maguire said: “There have been a few raised eyebrows over the way Textor has gone about things.

“He hasn’t behaved particularly professionally with some of his outbursts, certainly over the course of the last 12 months.

“Everton want stability. Textor worries me in that regard, in that he could be asset-rich and cash-poor. We’ve seen his French team [Lyon], that appears to have been put up for sale. These knee-jerk decisions are not good for the long-term development of a club.”

Everton and John Textor – the state of play

The main obstacle appearing to hold back any further progress between Textor and Everton is the 45% the businessman owns in Crystal Palace.

Premier League rules are preventing Textor from completing a deal as it stands, with Lyon and Botafogo owner Textor having actively looked to sell his Palace shares as soon as possible; he would own over double the percentage of the Toffees should he acquire Moshiri’s 94.1% stake.

It is proving difficult to sell the 58-year-old’s Palace shares, with no interest coming close to his asking price [Paul Brown, 22 August], and he has reportedly offered his stake at a discount to help accelerate a deal on Merseyside [The Guardian, 22 August].

A long and arduous saga has seen 777 Partners and the Friedkin Group stand and fall before him, and now Textor has sensed his opportunity to own a far larger control in arguably a bigger entity in the Premier League.

Moshiri remains very silent in the background as developments continue – and Everton supporters are frankly sick and tired of it rarely being a positive indication of progress.

In other Everton news, discussions surface over Sean Dyche’s future at the club.

For more Everton news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.

The post 'Few raised eyebrows' - Kieran Maguire shares Textor takeover worry at Everton appeared first on Goodison News.