Yeah they were really disadvantaged when we signed all of zero players in January knowing full well we were in the a serious relegation scrap and could not score goals to save our life. How is losing money to the point of being unable to invest in the first team cheating?

Cheating would be us not only breaching the loss rules, but also using the suspect money to bring in players.

Exactly this, it would turn the sport into a game of ligation all across the pyramid. If allowed to go through, not only relegated teams would be able to sue, but also teams that: missed out on promotion, didn’t win a title/trophy, European qualifications, etc.

I personally find it laughable that the teams allegedly suing us think Everton losing $20 million and having one of the worst runs of form in our history with a shoestring transfer budget somehow gave us an unfair advantage. I’m sorry, but if you managed to play worse football than Everton under Rafa/Lampard, that one is on your club. We’ve been absolutely horrid.

I can also think of an interesting hypothetical where if Everton were to get relegated as a result of a further nine point deduction from administration caused by a $300m liability hit, ironically we would have standing to countersue. It is completely stupid, leave the lawyers out of football.

Simply put the case should be shot down for lack of standing. If you somehow managed to perform worse than an Everton side that has been pissing money away on signings, firing managers annually, and consistently playing some of the worst football in the Premier League, you have nobody to blame but yourself.

As an Everton fan, I’m sorry your team got relegated but trying to sue us as the cause of said relegation is grasping at straws for an excuse that deflects blame away from your club. It also sets a very annoying and stupid precedent that could applied not just to cases of relegation, but any other instance where there is a perceived financial loss as a result of another club. Does Arsenal have standing to sue City (if that investigation ever yields results) for losing out on title revenue last season as a result of City’s advantaged financial position? It becomes a can of worms.

The fact of the matter is that the actions of Everton Football Club’s first team are in no way connected these financial breaches, that fault rests at the board/executive level. All this did to the first team is put us at an even greater disadvantage from a footballing perspective. We were in the midst of a horrid string of form last season and could do zero business in January because that’d mean overspending. Did not signing a striker leaving us with Neal Maupay, Ellis Simms, and an injured DCL give us a competitive advantage? Did constantly having protests against our own board to the point where they didn’t even bother showing up to the matches give us an advantage? No!

Footballing punishments should not be handed out for something that didn’t even give a footballing advantage. And as such, any attempt to sue over a purely footballing matter that is disconnected from the financial matters is pure hogwash.

Jarrad reminds a lot of John Stones when he played for us. Cool, collected defender with great technical ability. Comfortable on the ball and pushing into midfield. Looks like he’s been a starting CB for decades. And he’s playing alongside Tarkowski who is one of the most underrated CBs in the league. An experienced Branthwaite mentored by Tarkowski is going to be absolutely terrifying to play against in couple years.