Everton manager Sean Dyche says rules for fast-tracking financial irregularities should be changed to protect the competitive integrity of the Premier League.
The rules, agreed by Premier League clubs and introduced at the start of the season, are designed to ensure standard financial breaches are resolved within 12 weeks. They were changed so that any points deductions can be applied to the season in which clubs submit their accounts.
However, Dyche believes Everton’s experience exposed flaws in the system. In November, the club was deducted 10 points, falling from 14th to 19th place; on Monday, after an appeal, the deduction was reduced to six points, and the club climbed from 17th to 15th place.
Dyche said the uncertainty was affecting his players and was unfair to Luton, Nottingham Forest and Brentford, who found themselves closer to relegation after appealing the verdict. He called for points deductions from one season to be applied to the start of the next so that all clubs know where they stand throughout the season.
“What I’ve learned from this process and what I’m suggesting is they can’t judge you in the middle of the season,” said Dyche, whose side have not won in the Premier League since December. “Surely it would be better to do this at the end of the season and into the new season? Any sanctions will not be lifted immediately but will be in effect in the new season. It is a more level playing field for the league as a whole, although it is not Not exactly a level playing field.
“Imagine at the end of the season, boom, you get hit. And then you have about three months [in pre-season] Do whatever you need to do, even under sanctions, to be the best you can be competitively. The idea of all football is to build a competitive league. It’s even more challenging for players, fan mentality and football in general to have this happen in the middle of the season. “
Dyche welcomed the “clarity” brought by Everton’s partially successful appeal, but the club still faces the threat of a second points deduction this season for breaching financial rules until 2023.
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“All we’re focused on is that this part is done,” Dyche said. “What happens next will be handled by lawyers, if necessary. At the moment, we don’t know the exact benchmark. We don’t know the first one. Everyone is scratching their heads: ‘How did we get to the 10th one?’ “We’ll just have to see what happens next.”
