- A shareholders meeting was held at a five-star hotel in London on Tuesday
- Premier League chiefs spent hours discussing a number of contentious issues
- It’s the world against Everton – it can galvanise the players to stay up – IAKO
Premier League clubs have voted AGAINST a temporary ban on incoming loan deals between clubs with the same owners, meaning the likes of Newcastle will be free to trade with PIF-backed teams from Saudi Arabia.
In a shock twist, the fast-tracked proposal was not supported by the 14 top-flight members needed to implement the change, missing out by just one after a 13-7 ballot was returned.
Mail Sport revealed earlier this month that a vote would take place on November 21 at the next Premier League shareholders’ meeting. It was thought then that the motion would be passed.
But with 11 clubs part of, in effect, multi-club ownership models, we are told there was a fear among some that rules would evolve into a block on all transfers.
Manchester City, Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Brighton, West Ham, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Sheffield United and Crystal Palace all have owners with stakes in foreign clubs, while incoming Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe owns French team Nice.
Clubs often use others in their network to send players on loan to gain experience, and many did not want to risk that avenue being closed.
For Newcastle, it means they are still able to agree loan moves with Saudi teams owned by PIF, who have an 80-per-cent stake at St James’ Park.
With £52million Sandro Tonali banned for illegal gambling until August, the likes of Al-Hilal midfielder Ruben Neves had been discussed as an option.
Others such as Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante, Roberto Firmino, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Sadio Mane and Aymeric Laporte also play for PIF-owned teams.
We can also reveal that Premier League clubs have voted against tougher rules on associated-party commercial deals.
This would have meant having to prove multiple offers of the same value. However, the proposal failed to get the support needed.
The news of no ban on related-party loans will be a welcome boost to Eddie Howe’s squad, with the Magpies’ injury list running into double figures for their 2-0 defeat to Bournemouth ahead of the international break.
The vote came at a meeting between top flight chiefs at a five-star hotel in London on Tuesday, with a number of topics up for discussion amid hours of talks.
For example, the meeting came just four days after Everton were left stunned at being hit with a 10-point deduction for breaching financial rules.
Sean Dyche’s men have dropped into the bottom three as a result, but the Toffees have vowed to appeal the verdict.
Things could get worse for them, though, as Burnley, Leicester and Leeds – who have all been relegated from the Premier League in the last two seasons – are seeking £300m in compensation due to believing Everton’s breaches helped keep them in the top flight.
If they are successful with their claim, this could plunge Everton into administration and see them deducted a further nine points.
But Everton feel the punishment handed down to them last week was ‘unjust’ and in a statement released on Friday, they declared they would ‘monitor with great interest the decisions made in any other cases concerning the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules’.
This appeared to allude to how Manchester City currently have 115 charges hanging over them from back in February for allegedly breaking financial rules.
Their case remains ongoing, but shareholders from rival clubs were expected to question today if progress was being made in coming to a decision on whether City are guilty of any wrongdoing and what the potential punishment could be.
West Ham vice-chairman Karren Brady and Burnley chairman Alan Pace were among the chiefs who were both seen entering The Churchill Hyatt Regency Hotel on Tuesday morning in west London, before the likes of Brady, Crystal Palace co-owner Steve Parish, Arsenal executive vice-chair Tim Lewis and PGMOL chief refereeing officer Howard Webb were pictured leaving.
A new deal for funding the Football League was also expected to be ratified.
Reports on Monday claimed clubs will look to put pressure on the ‘Big Six’ to contribute more to a £130m rescue fund for the EFL.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
