‘Everton and Burnley to agree deal’ after legal update – Stefan Borson

Everton are still facing the consequences of their previous profit and sustainability (PSR) issues despite The Friedkin Group’s takeover in December.

Burnley were one of five clubs alongside Leeds United, Leicester City, Southampton and Nottingham Forest to apply for compensation after Everton were charged with a PSR breach for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 campaigns.

The Merseyside giants were docked eight points last season following their spending breaches, with top-flight clubs only permitted to make £105million of losses over a rolling three-year period.

David Phillips KC, the chairman of the commission that handed out the first points deduction, revealed he was satisfied the applicant clubs have potential claims for compensation.

The Lawyer reported on 12 March Everton have appointed Mark Howard KC to lead their case against Burnley this summer.

Finance expert Stefan Borson exclusively told Football Insider the two clubs are likely to agree a settlement deal before the hearing takes place.

Burnley finished third-bottom and four points behind Everton in 2021-22 before the Merseysiders were later found to have breached the PSR rules in that campaign.

Everton could be forced to pay £15million in compensation if the Championship side can prove they were financially impacted by the rule breach.

Everton want to avoid hearing after points deduction drama

Borson suggested Everton are likely to reach an agreement with Burnley to avoid having to deal with the independent commission that handed out their first points deduction.

He told Football Insider: “I think this is unlikely actually to end up in a hearing.

“I think the likelihood is that they’ll do a deal and Everton will pay them to settle it. Just to be clear, it’s never court. We hear this a lot.

“It has to be arbitrated because clubs can’t go to court over their disputes.

“They have to do it within either the Premier League rules or the FA rules. It all has to be arbitration or a hearing.

“This is what Everton might not like actually.

“This might press Everton to do a deal because the likelihood is that this case is under W51.5, which is a Premier League rule and that would mean that it was the original independent commission who gave Everton the 10-point deduction that would be making the decision here.

“Everton might not like the look of that because we know that they went very hard on Everton so they obviously weren’t very impressed with Everton’s behaviour and, in that case, Everton might go ‘Look, we’ve just got too much risk here, so we should do a deal’.”

Everton to submit new Abdoulaye Doucoure offer

Football Insider revealed on 10 March Everton are set to renegotiate terms with Abdoulaye Doucoure after declining to activate his one-year extension clause.

Sources say a fresh deal for the midfielder “can’t be ruled out” given his continued importance for David Moyes’s side.

The 32-year-old’s contract expires in June this year, with several other players currently set to leave on a free at the end of this season.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Michael Keane are among the other Everton stars whose deals will expire in the next few months.