In a way , this feeling is worse in the long run than relegation. Atleast Everton , if they go down have the benefit of parachute payments to have a very good chance of coming back. The fans will be invested in them coming back as the hope will sustain them (the hope that they can win the championship).
With this , knowing that they are fucked over this coming season with a possible points penalty / transfer ban and a whole lot of Deadwood in the side…
And the probability of any half decent talent there being sold off… It’s all going to be full gloom.
They would have been fucked. Parachute payments pale next to stable PL revenue, and they are going to be broke for years because of that stadium project. Big picture, three years ago they thought they were getting a free stadium. Now they are being forced into a very highly leveraged debt-equity deal simply to finish it. My suspicion is that if they were relegated, that deal would have collapsed.
I have to go into work on Wednesday and face some of these people…going to have to bite down hard on my lip to avoid losing my job for aggravated assault.
The bitter blues at my work are actually sound lads, it’s just when football is brought up…you have to have a certain tolerance level to be in the same vicinity.
Was at my wifes sisters funeral on Friday.
She had insisted “no black, plenty of colour” at the funeral.
Wifes family are all bitters except one sensible neice.
I spoke to my brother in law and his sons, who were all dressed colourfully, and asked them if they were saving the black ties for Monday morning?
I had 3 of them who felt compelled to tell me how relieved they were at staying up. I genuinely don’t know why they told me, it’s like they were expecting me to congratulate them or something.
They’re a fucking strange breed.
If you had indulged them, I can guarantee they would’ve quickly changed the topic of conversation to LFC and told you how how shit our season was. They can’t help themselves.
It will be interesting to see how the new UEFA financial rules may impact what they can do.
On the one hand it allows for greater losses over a three year period providing they can show they are in good financial health. Whether that proposed investment allows them to do that or whether it just goes towards stadium costs who knows but there’s definitely a greater flexibility.
But on the other hand their most recent accounts showed 96% of revenue is going on wages. That’s obscene given the squad has been in relegation battles the last couple seasons.
They’re surely going to need to make some sales. Obviously Gordon has gone which gives them a good chunk of cash but it probably doesn’t bring the wage bill down and the revenue isn’t likely to hugely increase until they can move into the stadium.
There’s not a lot there to sell. Pickford seems like he wants to stay. Calvert-Lewin is surely too injury prone for anyone to give them decent money for him. Onana looked decent but is still raw and faded as the season went on. After that, there’s not a lot else anyone is going to give them a decent fee for. A couple contracts are coming to an end but if they want to buy this summer they’ll quickly add that back up.
Reminds me of one of those types of bloke I’m sure we’ve all worked with. He’s been there forever and everyone around the place seems to think he’s a great guy even though he’s not really that good at his job.
Management tolerate him as he does just enough to get by and keeps morale up around the place. He has no intention of leaving because he knows that might not really cut it elsewhere and he’ll get found out.
Was my first thought, but he works best in a three and Dyche prefers a back four so not an obvious fit. Also, I thought I may have read a post by @Sweeting or someone a while back mentioning they have a young and promising CB who they may look to give game time next season.
