Jamie Carragher dubs Everton’s Farhad Moshiri ‘one of English football’s WORST EVER owners’ and calls his legacy a ‘shambles’… as club faces a second punishment for breaching Premier League spending rules

Jamie Carragher has dubbed Everton owner Farhad Moshiri one of England ‘worst ever club owners’ and called his legacy a ‘shambles’ in the wake of fresh breaches by the Toffees of the Premier League’s spending regulations. 

Everton face another looming punishment after being handed a second set of charges by the English top flight just months after the side suffered a 10-point deduction for earlier breaches. 

The Goodison Park side have a fortnight to respond to the charges, but their appeal will not be heard until the appeals process for the original punishment of the 10-point deduction is decided. 

The prospect of further punishment has cast a pall over the fine work done by Sean Dyche to guide his team out of the relegation zone after receiving the sanction to sit a point clear of the drop. 

The former Liverpool star was keen to stress that despite protests from the fans against the Premier League for handing out stiff punishment, the blame should be set firmly at the door of Moshiri, who has been at the helm of the club since 2016. 

Fans have long been protesting the Everton hierarchy and Carragher believes they are now paying the price for poor decision-making

The former Liverpool star deemed Moshiri’s tenure a ‘shambles’ in his column on Wednesday

Carragher opted not to mince words when discussing Moshiri’s tenure in charge, calling out the British-Iranian billionaire for being responsible for ‘everything that has led Everton to this point’. 

‘Moshiri’s legacy is a shambles,’ the pundit wrote in his column for Telegraph Sport. ‘The crisis engulfing the club is down to him and yet his silence – and that of some of his former Goodison executives – is deafening.

‘Everything that led Everton to this point begins with Moshiri and those who ran the club so badly on his behalf.’

Adding that he ‘totally gets’ the ire of supporters upon hearing news of the possibility of additional punishment, Carragher went on to stress that ‘the strongest emotions should be directed towards their own executives, or ex-board members, who created this sorry situation’. 

‘In their heads and hearts, Evertonians know that better than anyone,’ Carragher continued. ‘They have been trying to hold their hierarchy to account for years, holding numerous demonstrations because they could see the dangers ahead. Those supporters have been totally vindicated.

‘Moshiri has been sailing close to the wind for years, leaving the club at risk of exposure. At one point Everton’s wages were 95 percent of the club’s turnover. That is unbelievable.’

Everton suffered a 10-point deduction just months before being hit with a second spending charge by the Premier League

But Carragher argues blame should sit with the club board and Moshiri rather than the league

Carragher also took issue with Moshiri’s relationship with former partner Alisher Usmanov, a sanctioned Russian oligarch who Everton was forced to cut ties with after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Mail Sport reported in March 2022 that the club had been left with a black hole in their finances of up to £300million following Usmanov’s withdrawal, which saw his USM Group wrap up sponsorship of the side.  

But Carragher stressed that under Moshiri, the club had ‘spent too much and spent badly over many years’, leading Everton teetering on the edge of financial calamity. 

Moshiri will hope to call time on his ownership of the Premier League stalwarts after signing a deal with American private equity firm 777 Partners in September for the sale of the club. 

But the company – which has already invested more than £140m into the struggling side – is still waiting for approval from the Premier League, which they hope to receive later this month. 

Mail Sport reported on Tuesday that the club’s sale price could yet drop due to the club’s finishing position in the league, which will undoubtedly be affected by further possible sanctions. 

But 777 do not come to Everton without some concerns, most recently over one of the group’s clubs Standard Liege being hit with a transfer ban. 

Josh Wander (leaning) is set to take the helm at Goodison Park after his 777 Partners struck a deal with Moshiri in September

The side were placed under embargo after failing to meet transfer payments for two players – Ilyes Ziani from Union Saint-Gilloise in May 2023, and Aron Donnum, now at Toulouse, who signed in 2021 from Norwegian side Valerenga – a deal completed before 777 Partners took control of the club. 

Liege are confident that the sanction placed against them will shortly be lifted, but there is no confirmation yet to whether they will be allowed to do business in the January window. 

Liege are one of several clubs in the 777 Partners football portfolio which also includes Genoa, Hertha Berlin, Vasco da Gama, Red Star Paris and Melbourne Victory.

It emerged last year that their Brazilian side Vasco da Gama had also missed scheduled transfer payments.