Everton

Football finance expert Kieran Maguire has been discussing the current situation at Everton, as 777 Partners' takeover looks increasingly unlikely to reach completion before the deadline on Friday, 31st May.

"I think it is a challenging position for Farhad Moshiri, the club and 777 Partners," Maguire told Total Sport Merseyside. "They have all got consequences.

"From what we understand, 777's period of exclusivity to acquire Everton Football Club expires at the end of May. That also may coincide with one of the big loans to the club being due for repayment at the same time.

"How that was going to be funded and organised, Farhad Moshiri probably thought that was going to be 777's problem rather than his.

"So, it is a tricky position but it is in everybody's interests for Everton Football Club to carry on.

"I think all of the stakeholders in this situation realise that, including the Premier League who have put some fairly significant obstacles in the way of 777 Partners buying the club."

On whether the administration rumours are wholly correct, Maguire added: "I think in terms of administration, there are other parties interested in the club. I would think at least one of them has done the sums.

"If a football club goes into administration - and you buy that club from the administrators - you only buy the assets and you don't inherit any of the debt. Therefore, you could buy Everton Football Club for a price which may be cheaper than buying it from Farhad Moshiri.

"You don't have to pay MSP, you don't have to repay 777, you don't have to repay any of the other lenders - so you can see the benefits in that.

"The downsides are potential job losses, suppliers taking a significant cut to what they are owed, and the Premier League would take steps to address it.

"So there are positives and negatives to administration."

Listen to the full Everton takeover special here

Manchester United are targeting Everton's 21-year-old English defender Jarrad Branthwaite, who is valued at between £60-70m. (Sky Sports), external

Everton and West Ham United have opened talks with Burnley over a deal for 22-year-old French defender Maxime Esteve. (L'Equipe - in French), external

Want more transfer news? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Image source, Getty Images

With the deadline for 777 Partners to take control of Everton set for Friday, the next few days are crucial for the future of the Blues.

BBC Radio Merseyside's Giulia Bould is hosting an hour-long programme on BBC Radio Merseyside later, alongside special guests, to discuss what happens next.

Listen live from 18:00 BST on BBC Sounds

Shamoon Hafez
BBC Sport football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Everton are interested in signing England midfielder Kalvin Phillips on a season-long loan deal from Manchester City.

Phillips, 28, joined City from Leeds United for £42m in 2022 but has struggled to make an impression and spent the second half of last season on-loan at West Ham.

The Toffees are also in talks to re-sign winger Jack Harrison from Leeds on another loan deal.

Harrison, 27, played 35 games and scored four goals at Everton last season.

Crystal Palace part-owner John Textor is stepping up his bid to buy Everton, with a proposed purchase by US-based investment group 777 Partners unlikely to go ahead. (Sky Sports, external)

Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip column

Image source, Getty Images

Crystal Palace co-owner John Textor has expressed an interesting in buying Everton.

The American businessman has told the Financial Times Palace is no longer an ideal fit for his multi-club portfolio as he is unable to acquire a majority shareholding.

Everton's takeover by 777 Partners continues to develop in the face of fan pressure for owner Farhad Moshiri to seek alternative buyers.

Asked if he had held talks about buying Everton, Textor told The Athletic: "Yes. With the existing constituents - different groups, different lenders, different equity holders.

"I've asked them 'Is there a way to solve all this confusion and address everyone's problems'?

"I'm very open-minded to it but I don't want to come into a situation where I'm not really welcome.

"I'm watching it but 777 still has a contract. There are people that are close to the club who care a lot about it who are also investing. There's the guy running it who's still calling the shots. Maybe we're uniquely positioned to solve a lot of problems for people but we're just watching it right now because there are other people who already own pieces of that club who also want to figure it out.

"I'm looking at that but it's quite confusing and some things have to clean up."

Textor's Eagle Football group has interests in French club Lyon, Botafogo in Brazil and RWD Molenbeek in Belgium.

Image source, Reuters

How closely have you been paying attention to the Toffees' Premier League campaign?

Check out our Everton quiz - and see if your knowledge is in order.

Try it now

For all the club Premier League quizzes, head here

We asked you how Everton should strengthen the squad this summer on a budget.

Here are some of your answers:

Johnny: Free transfer window could boost our short term squad deficiencies. In defence Ben Johnson of West ham offers full-back cover, Wilfred Ndidi of Leicester and his team-mate Kelechi Iheanacho might prove savvy additions while Ross Barkley, Josh Brownhill and Che Adams are other options. Another loan for Jack Harrison seems sensible also.

John: Recruitment will have to be bargain bin and loans and out of contract players unless a new owner can pump some money in.

Richard: Budget strengthening can’t just be trusted pros in their mid thirties. We need to bring a couple of youngsters through. Also get the scouts out and around Europe. Players are out there somewhere and obviously a couple of choice loan players.

Jim: A new keeper, two centre-forwards and a right winger and don't sell Jarrad Branthwaite, job done. When the new players arrive, pack Pickford, Calvert-Lewin and Beto's bags and change the locks.

Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin is a target for Newcastle United, who also have West Ham forward Jarrod Bowen on their wish list. (Telegraph - subscription required), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column

Mike Hughes
BBC Radio Merseyside reporter

For a team with Everton’s rich and illustrious history, finishing 15th in the Premier League table doesn’t seem to be something to be getting too carried away with it.

But it really is worth bearing in mind that a few short weeks ago, Everton were amongst the favourites to be relegated. In the end Sean Dyche engineered a remarkable revival that saw them end the season with 40 points, even after an eight-point deduction.

Never mind the on-the-field difficulties the PSR related deductions brought about, it also cost the club the thick end of £10m in Premier League merit payments that are related to where you finish in the table. How useful would that money have been to Dyche, to strengthen the squad?

The biggest success for the club this season

It might be indicative of just how far the mighty have fallen, but make no mistake about it, avoiding relegation is without doubt the biggest success for the team and the club this season. Lesser teams and managers might well have buckled under the strain of two desperate Premier League points deductions as well as a seemingly endless catalogue of negative stories surrounding the ownership of the club.

If Everton the club has lost its way in recent years for many and various reasons, Everton the team have again showed a relentless appetite to get the job done and to make sure that the Premier League sanctity of the club is preserved.

Biggest let down and frustration

In a campaign when “A Plague On All Your Houses” visited Everton, your spoilt for choice when looking for frustration and let downs that have hampered the season. But in the end one dark and dangerous episode stands head and shoulders above anything else. Or should I say two dark and dangerous episodes ?

The Premier League and its Independent Commission’s brought football down to a new low with the way they sought to punish Everton for wanting to get better on and off the field. Of course financial rules need to be adhered to, but the League and the commission’s lack of understanding of a multi layered series of extenuating circumstances, paints them in a particularly poor light.

Quite how going into administration is worthy of a nine point deduction, but Everton’s charges and penalties were initially worth a ten point penalty, shows just how unfit for purpose PSR has proved to be. Never mind the independent commission that act as the arbiters of it.

Too much of how Richard Masters has operated during his time as the Premier League chief executive, has smacked of 'making it up as you go along'. He really should be doing much, much better.

Key Item on the summer agenda

This has to be the resolution of the farcical situation surrounding the future ownership of the club.

Farhad Moshiri wants to sell the club, but his preferred owners, 777 Partners, don’t seem to have either the financial muscle to complete the deal or the business acumen that would give you any real confidence in their ability to get the club back on a firmer footing.

Moshiri has extended his deadline for 777 Partners to come up with the money and and meet the conditions laid down by the Premier League for them to be able to complete the purchase.

That new deadline is 31 May.

If they fail to meet the necessary requirements then MSP Capital and Liverpool born businessmen Andy Bell and George Downing could step in. There are rumours of other interested parties, but only rumours.

Given that there’s a state of the art new stadium taking shape on the Mersey waterfront, Everton need new owners with vision, ambition and common sense, and not forgetting pretty deep pockets.

How would you strengthen Everton on a budget this summer? Tell us here, external

Image source, Getty Images

When Ademola Lookman spurned the chance to equalise by spectacularly failing a panenka-style penalty with the last kick-off the game for Fulham against West Ham in November 2020 few would have predicted he would go on to become the first man to score a hat-trick in a Europa League or Uefa Cup final.

A product of the Charlton youth academy, Lookman was on loan from RB Leipzig at the time and had already had a spell at Everton. Another loan - this time to Leicester City - followed, showing the difficulty the London-born Nigeria international has endured trying to find a home at club level.

But find a home he now certainly has.

Before moving to Italy to sign for Atalanta in 2022, Lookman's best league goal scoring return was six at Leicester.

In his first season in Serie A, he scored 13 and registered eight assists. In his second he has scored nine and assisted six.

The third of his stunning hat-trick in the Europa League final win over previously unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen was his fifth European strike of the season.

Now 26 years old, Lookman has illustrated that struggling in the Premier League does not define a player's career and there are many routes to the top.

Now with an iconic performance in a European final to his name, in his words, it is "just the beginning".

We asked you to select your Everton player of the season from the four candidates chosen by our fan contributor.

After voting in your thousands, we can reveal the winner is... Jarrad Branthwaite!

Image source, Getty Images

And here's what Briony Bragg from This Fan Girl, external had to say about your winner...

"At 21 years old, Branthwaite has commanded Everton's backline and forced his way into England boss Gareth Southgate's plans for the Euros. If I have any wish for next season it is that we can keep hold of him!"

See the breakdown of results

And here is how the votes went for the other 19 Premier League clubs

Image source, Getty Images

Everton secured another season in the Premier League despite two deductions totalling eight points.

Mike Richards, from Unholy Trinity, external, has given his verdict on the 2023-24 campaign.

Season rating: 8/10. That is solely for the fight and heart the players and manager have shown in such difficult circumstances. External factors have made the season incredibly tough.

Happy with your manager? Sean Dyche has done a fantastic job in what he described as the "most difficult" in his managerial career. The way he has navigated a campaign that included two points deductions, one appeal, ownership uncertainty and a distinct lack of leadership at the top, he certainly deserves to be our manager next season.

Unsung hero: Rightly so, Jarrad Branthwaite should walk away with all the club awards and external praise after a fantastic season. One player who has sometimes been forgotten or overlooked is Vitaliy Mykolenko. If there was an award for most improved player at the club, he would definitely win it. His improvement has been more noticeable, and his importance even more evident, as the season has progressed. He is now comfortable in the Premier League.

Player you would most like to sign: At this point, it is impossible to say who we can sign and with what money. Given his recent form and with his injury woes seemingly behind him, getting Dominic Calvert-Lewin tied down to a new deal is an important job this summer. Looking back to his best and with only 12 months left of his current contract, I would be working incredibly hard to convince him to sign for a few more seasons.

Best away fans: With the vast majority resorting to poverty chanting, it is a difficult award to give. We even made our neighbour's fans turn into blue seats as the second half wore on last month, so they are out of the running. I would give a nod to Sheffield United supporters, though. Sang all game, despite already being relegated and with a hint of good-mannered humour.

See how our other fan writers rated their club's season here

Manchester United are exploring the possibility of signing Crystal Palace and defender Marc Guehi if they fail to strike a deal with Everton for Jarrad Branthwaite. (Mail), external

The Blues have placed a minimum price tag of £80m on centre-back Branthwaite, who has also attracted interest from Newcastle United and Tottenham. (i Sport), external

Want more transfer news? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

BBC Sport chief football writer Phil McNulty has been answering your questions on Gareth Southgate's England squad which will be announced today at 14:00 (GMT).

Peter asked: Do you think Southgate will pick the two best-performing English centre-halves in this season? On any statistical basis they are James Tarkowski and Jarrad Branthwaite. Or will he just roll out the same old names?

Phil answered: They have been a top-class pairing for Everton this season, as the statistics show, and I think Branthwaite will be an England regular in future, but I’d put money on John Stones and Harry Maguire starting for England in Germany if they are both fit.

Follow McNulty's Q&A here

Image source, Getty Images

From football news reporter Shamoon Hafez:

Everton centre-back Branthwaite is expected to be in Gareth Southgate's provisional squad when it is announced at 14.00 BST.

Branthwaite was a revelation for Everton last season, making 35 league appearances. Everton won 12 matches and kept 12 clean sheets when the 21-year-old was in the side last term.

He was called up for England duty in March, but did not play.

There are about 24 hours to go before Everton's player of the season vote closes.

If you are yet to make your choice, you have until 10:00 BST on Wednesday, 22 May to decide who has impressed you the most from our shortlist.

The candidates have been chosen by fan writer Briony Bragg from This Fan Girl, external.

Find out the reasons behind her selections and make your choice here

Manchester United are interested in 21-year-old Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite, and the Toffees could move for 27-year-old Galatasaray and Colombia centre-back Davinson Sanchez as a replacement. (Caught Offside), external

Want more transfer news? Read Tuesday's full gossip column