Sean Dyche confirms Everton double injury blow after Brighton draw

Everton fans have called for clarity regarding the verdict of the club’s appeal into a 10-point deduction for breaching financial regulations

Another day ticks by and still Everton remain in the dark about the outcome of their appeal to the 10-point deduction for breaching financial regulations.

And they’re not the only ones left waiting nervously about the ruling of the three individuals tasked with determining if the largest points deduction in Premier League history – greater than when Portsmouth actually went into administration in 2010 – is fair punishment for spending £19.5m more than the permitted £105m under profit and sustainability rules (PSR).

It affects Burnley and Sheffield United, who will suddenly find that the closest team to the elusive safety of 17th place are more than seven points clear if it is considered too harsh. It affects Luton Town, behind Everton only on goal difference.

It affects Nottingham Forest, Crystal Palace and Brentford, who would find themselves sucked one place closer to the drop if, say, the penalty was halved.

It affects not only the clubs but the fans, the executives, the staff that ensure they function. This week we have heard how it has unsettled players and even the seemingly unflappable Everton manager Sean Dyche revealed it is taking its toll.

“They take those 10 points off immediately, so you keep looking at that table and you keep getting asked about being in the bottom three, four, five. They don’t leave you up there, so how do we know how that affects the psychology?” Dyche said.

“It changes the perception, it changes the feel, it changes the fan base, it changes the feel of performances. That’s just a fact. We all measure it differently when the team are there, top, middle or bottom.”

Not to the same degree of intensity, but this will be felt by all the clubs around them.

Everton supporters have been desperately seeking clarity for weeks now and are losing patience.

“We still don’t know the outcome of the Premier League commission and a cloud of secrecy still hovers over the Premier League sanctions policy,” Dave Kelly, chair of the club’s Fan Advisory Board (FAB), told the Liverpool Echo on Thursday. “This has implications for the whole football community, not just Everton.”

He added: “The time has come for this lingering uncertainty to end. The football club, its employees, the wider community and supporters need clarity on the path forward.”

Everton’s FAB – one of the groups established across Premier League clubs to give fans a more prominent voice in discussions with executives and board members – has received numerous correspondence with fans of other clubs concerned about the disproportionate nature of their punishment. They must fear one day this could apply to them.

The group submitted a lengthy statement to the appeal panel making a plea that the penalty was overly harsh on fans.

“The sanction imposed on Everton ultimately has ramifications that go far beyond the team’s standing in the league table,” the statement, signed by Kelly, FAB vice chair Tony Sampson and secretary Julie Clarke, read.

“Although framed as a ‘sporting sanction’, it will inevitably have direct and indirect financial consequences. The fans are rightly concerned that this brings about the sort of uncertainty which may jeopardise the viability of our historic club, and with it its many and varied community projects, as well as the stadium.

“From the fans’ perspective there are more proportionate ways that any breach of the PSR can be marked which do not involve such an unfair and long-term impact on the club, the fans, and the wider community.

“Fans are also aware that there is fixed penalty of nine points for clubs who become insolvent. The fans cannot understand why clubs should be subject to a more punitive sanction for a breach of the PSR than what it would have received had the club become insolvent.”

Nobody has been able to provide clarification on if the appeal committee has taken into consideration the supporters’ views, which were not shared during the initial hearing.

The FAB have requested that they make another – likely similar – submission to the committee overseeing the second charge for breaching PSR. Again, they remain in the dark about if they will be able to do so, when the hearing will be, they have no possible inkling as to what further punishment they face.

There is one line that stands out in the 25-page witness statement document they created with the assistance of a barrister. “Fans want to enjoy the spectacle of an elite sporting competition, contested on the pitch, not in the courtroom.”

What with Everton’s ongoing appeal, the club’s second case hinging on it, Nottingham Forest’s hearing (not to mention Manchester City’s 115 charges that have been ongoing for years now) it is impossible for the decisions of courtrooms not to have a significant impact on the spectacle and competition for the foreseeable future.

“Evertonians are naturally eager to know what the outcome of the appeal will be,” a FAB spokesperson told i. “But this is a football-wide issue that has implications for other teams and their supporters.

“Whilst we all will want the issues to be properly considered , the uncertainty helps no one.

“We hope that clarity can be provided soon, so that Everton and the football community as a whole can move forward.”