Did The Friedkin Group Ever Care About Everton?

Everton are back to where they were a few years ago, except in a more favourable, attractive position. 

There has been talk of The Friedkin Group (TFG) looking to sell at least part of Everton Football Club over the last few months, but a statement has now been released confirming their desire to seek investment. 

It was less than two years ago that TFG took over at Everton, helping to see through the stadium project and save the club from a difficult position. Farhad Moshiri was, of course, Everton’s previous owner, and he ran the club into the ground, leading to relegation battles, points deductions, and financial difficulties. 

Two years on, Everton are in a much more comfortable position financially. There’s little to no risk of a relegation battle taking place this season, and points deductions are a thing of the past.

Everton have progressed in some ways, but many fans won’t look back on TFG’s tenure with much fondness. 

TFG have barely been seen in England over the last two years, never mind at the Hill Dickinson Stadium. The signs were there, but it’s becoming crystal clear now that they have other priorities when it comes to business. 

Paul Joyce has reported that TFG even asked for Zoom meetings regarding Everton to be recorded, rather than having to attend them. It’s not a lot to ask TFG to come to England to attend important meetings, never mind asking them to join a Zoom call remotely.

After all, this is a club you’ve spent hundreds of millions of pounds on. How can it not be seen as important?

TFG simply don’t understand Everton and its fans. Attending a few games in a season would allow them to get a taste of the passion of the club. Speaking to fans at games will give them an idea of the value of the supporters.

Nobody is asking for an owner to be a fan, to care as much as supporters, or to make decisions based only on fan feelings. What they do want, though, is an owner that cares and makes a point to prove it.

Moshiri had plenty of flaws, but at least he was trying to show he cared by attending games.

It’s clear to see that TFG were just looking to make a quick profit on Everton. It’s like those resellers you see on the internet. They’ll see a run-down coffee table up for £20. They’ll buy it, give it a bit of a polish, maybe even a paint job, and sell it for £100. It cost them a bit to sort out, but they made a profit in the end.

That’s how TFG’s tenure feels. They saw a sleeping giant of a football club available at a bargain price. They came in, sorted a few bits out, and now they want to sell.

It’s been claimed that their valuation is around £800m, which is double what they paid for the club.

The summer transfer window was, quite frankly, a disgrace. Ending the window with one right-back, who cost just £4m, one left-back, and one striker is completely unacceptable. 

Trying to sell one of our academy products with such little time remaining in the transfer window was, again, unacceptable. Everton reversed the decision after backlash from the supporters, which once again shows the disconnect between them and the ownership.

Selling Iliman Ndiaye, for example, is fine. Everton could have held out for a better fee, but that’s up for debate anyway. To then spend just £4m from that money is ludicrous, and it makes it fair for fans to question TFG’s desire.

Of course, they were willing to commit £40m to sign Folarin Balogun, but it did feel like a late panic. Even signing Balogun on deadline day would have made it an unacceptable window. 

TFG can’t take full blame for the window. The likes of Angus Kinnear are involved in the recruitment process, but at the end of the day, TFG has them in charge. 

When Moshiri was bought out, the message among many Evertonians was along the lines of ‘thanks, but don’t let the door hit you on the way out’. Some fans didn’t include the thanks, but some were grateful for the stadium being built. 

Overall, Moshiri’s tenure was a disaster, and the stadium only papered over some huge cracks. Fans are well within their right not to even thank Moshiri at all. 

TFG’s tenure feels a little bit similar. Thanks for sorting out the mess, but see ya. 

It’s hard to feel a connection to the owners when they’ve shown little care themselves and they already want to jump ship.

Evertonians can be grateful for getting the club out of the mess and stabilising, but that was only a small percentage of the job. Everton need a long-term plan, not just stability. A plan to get the club to the European places and competing for trophies, not further uncertainty after we’ve been stabilised. 

It’s no good steadying the ship and then offloading the club to anyone who will pay the money. TFG claim that they are looking for the right buyer, not just any buyer, but how can we believe that? Do they care who buys the club as long as they pay the money?

The evidence is there to give fans reason to be a little sceptical.

Realistically, TFG aren’t in the same ballpark when it comes to being as bad as Moshiri, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if fans felt the same way in terms of being glad to see the back of them. 

This is something that needs solving ASAP, as fans have had enough of uncertainty.