‘It’s a joke’ – Jamie O’Hara explodes in new Everton-Premier League rant live on air

Jamie O’Hara has slammed the Premier League for the threat of points deductions in the middle of the season, with Everton and Nottingham Forest both fearing the outcome of investigations.

This came after a Nottingham Forest fan shared that they would wait and see whether they receive a points deduction, and the result of Everton’s appeal, before feeling safe about the relegation battle.

As things stand, Everton occupy the final relegation place, but a reduction on their ten-point penalty could see them jump back out, and with another investigation looming, another one could send them back again.

“I’m not having this points deduction stuff in the middle of a season,” said O’Hara in a new rant live on talkSPORT [17 February, 18:42].

“You just don’t know what you’re dealing with. In the games as well, and when other teams are playing, you’re wondering do we need to go for a winner, is a point a good point? You don’t know. You’re thinking another team might get a points deduction.

“I have to say, I can’t believe we’re dealing with this during a season. I get it, if you’ve broken the rules and a points deduction comes at the start of the season, you start on a -5 or -8 or -10, fine, deal with it.

But to be thinking about ‘How many points do we need to get because we might get five taken off us, while the season is going on? It’s a joke. This is the Premier League we’re talking about here, and it’s like amateur hour.”

Everton season will be decided by the Premier League

It says a lot about what football has become when there are four or five teams at the bottom of the table who will be aware that their fate could be entirely decided by an independent panel sitting in a room somewhere in London.

Everton and Nottingham Forest could both be handed further deductions, meaning the likes of Luton and Crystal Palace will also be awaiting those decisions as they remain in the battle.

Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer described the situation as “messy” recently, given the numerous outcomes that have presented themselves, with any combination of points deductions and appeals now on the cards at Goodison Park.

Say the Premier League hand them five points off of the deduction following the appeal verdict, they may then just add those five back on as a result of the second investigation, leaving us right back to square one.

Points deductions are fine, punishments are fine, but uncertainty about where several Premier League teams stand as we head towards the end of the season is a shambles from those at the top.