Though it would take a stretch of the imagination, picture Sean Dyche guiding Everton in a championship fight—top of the league, head-to-head with Manchester City.
Everton loses 10 points for violating the Profit and Sustainability rules, while City, which was already fined 114 more points for infringing rule W.82.1, can get ready for their next title defense. One imagines that there would be a deafening scream for justice, proportionality, and integrity.
Given the drastically different paths that Everton and Manchester City have taken since Farhad Moshiri and Sheikh Mansour invested billions of dollars in their respective teams, the aforementioned scenario may appear ludicrously speculative. Few people can envision Everton as a title contender, which is devastating evidence of their financial mismanagement. This is because, whereas City utilized their extensive
Everton feels like an easier target for a Premier League board under pressure from its current and previous stakeholders – especially those who have made living within their means non-negotiable – to show its claws because of City’s success, which has given them power and a defensive shield that Goodison Park does not have.
That does not change the fact that this dishonorable tale has a lesson: if you want to incite a Premier League investigation for cheating, go large, go bold, and put off the potential of facing consequences for years while you keep winning all the major tournaments.
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