06 March 2024 , 12:37
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Burnley are reportedly considering whether to take legal action against the Premier League after Everton’s punishment for breaking profit and sustainability rules was finalised.
Everton saw their initial 10-point deduction reduced to six points on appeal after they recorded losses of £124.5million over a three-year period, exceeding the £105m limit. Burnley, Leeds and Leicester had previously considered suing Everton for compensation after they were relegated from the Premier League and the Toffees avoided the drop during the years of their breaches.
That possibility has faded due to Everton’s financial problems, but the Clarets are now considering going after the league instead. The Daily Mail reports that Burnley are taking legal advice over whether to bring a financial claim against the Premier League on the grounds they were too slow to act in punishing Everton. Mirror Football have contacted Burnley to request comment.
Burnley would have survived the drop in 2021/22 had the six-point deduction come into effect during that campaign, having finished four points behind the Toffees. Along with Leeds, they have previously written to the Premier League to make clear they reserved the right to sue for compensation.
The chair of the independent commission that heard Everton’s case, David Phillips KC, ruled in the summer that other clubs would be entitled to pursue compensation if the club were found guilty. Burnley will have to weigh up the potential returns from legal action versus the costs involved.
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Everton broke the league's profit and sustainability rules for a three-season period between 2019/20 and 2021/22. The Premier League had wanted to have Everton’s case heard last season, but were unable to press ahead because the independent commission agreed with the club that it should be delayed. With the points deduction changed from 10 to six, that case has now been concluded, but Everton and Nottingham Forest are still awaiting the results of another potential PSR breach.
Premier League clubs voted at their 2023 annual general meeting to change the rules so that such cases can be heard immediately during the season in which they occur. That sped up process means clubs are now ordered to submit their accounts by December 31, rather than the previous date of March, and that the independent hearing has to be concluded no later than 12 weeks after the complaint was heard.
Burnley were relegated in May 2022 after finishing four points below Everton (James Williamson/Getty Images)Whether they sue or not, Burnley are facing a stark financial reality, with another relegation likely coming in a few months. Vincent Kompany’s side are 19th in the Premier League and 11 points from safety with 11 matches remaining.
Kompany refused to be drawn on Everton’s situation when asked last week. “I don’t have the pretension to chip in with this debate, for me my only focus is Burnley Football Club and this weekend,” he said. “I don’t want to give a generic answer where I just bat it away but in reality I really don’t care. I just care about my team and what they do. That’s the only thing I want to concern myself with.”
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