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Leeds United 'furious' at Everton spending, launch £300m legal threat with Leicester, Southampton and Nottingham Forest
Leeds United will demand £100million in compensation if they are relegated and Everton are found to have breached FFP rules, the Daily Mail reports.
The Whites gave up a similar legal threat a year ago, having entered into a pact with Burnley, after receiving assurances from the Premier League that the huge losses registered at Goodison Park were permitted due to Covid-19.
But with the Toffees charged this year and set to face an independent commission, the clubs at risk of relegation, and Southampton who are already down, have filed papers to become party to the Everton hearing and will seek a huge windfall if Everton are found against.
If Sam Allardyce keeps the Whites up they won’t remain in the fight, with £300million in total set to be sought by whichever three clubs go down, assuming Everton are not one.
Burnley are said to be “bitter” over their relegation a year ago and are also involved, with the potential to launch another claim on top.
The clubs had lobbied for Everton’s hearing to be brought forward, but when this was rejected they signalled their intention to sue, with another independent commission in line to hear the claim if the first finds against Everton.
The £100million figure is reportedly the amount deemed to cover a year without Premier League money, minus parachute payments. Everton maintain they’ve broken no rules.
Retaliation
When the huge losses came out in the Goodison Park accounts last year there was a lot of noise about the potential repercussions that were brushed away by the league’s assurances.
But after they changed their tune this year and charged Everton it looks to be a very different situation this time around.
Given there has hardly been cavalier spending on the blue half of Merseyside for two seasons, and they were the only club in the Premier League not to sign anyone this January, it could be argued that they if they stay up it would be in spite of their financial situation not because of it, but if they are found guilty it is clear that those around them won’t take it lying down.
Allardyce may be able to pull off the great escape and keep Leeds United out of this dispute altogether, as plenty of pieces have to fall into place for it to go ahead, and simply staying up would be far preferable.
There will be some nervous executives at Goodison Park currently, unless they can prove to the commission that their accounts show permitted losses.
The turmoil that the Whites have been through this season, and indeed last, pales in comparison to the drama at Everton, who now have multiple threats to navigate in the coming weeks and months, including relegation itself, the FFP charge and potentially two compensation claims.
In other Leeds United news, Chris Sutton is shocked at an Allardyce mistake in an “enormous moment” which might have already sealed the club’s fate.