Possible Everton points deduction just one of many problems at Merseyside club

Stormy weather has been seen around Goodison Park as Everton faces both financial and football troubles.

New boss Frank Lampard has had a mixed start since joining the club, tasked with dragging the Toffees out of a relegation scrap.

His job could now be made nearly impossible with the threat of a points deduction.

The news has cast ominous-looking grey clouds over one side of Stanley Park, while the red half of Liverpool continue to go from strength to strength, trophy to trophy and financial success along the way.

Now it's not just the threat of other teams that could send one of English football's most famous and historic clubs into the second tier for the first time since 1954.

Everton has only spent four seasons outside the top flight of English football in its history and fans have become accustomed to seeing their side playing football against the very best.

So what is going wrong at Everton?

Will Everton get a points deduction?

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It is unlikely that Everton will get a points deduction, but it is possible in theory.

Football finance expert Kieran Maguire said: "They would not have signed [Nathan] Patterson in January if [they were] about to exceed the limit but [they] are pretty close to it."

Clubs are only allowed to lose a maximum of £105 million over a period of three years, but the Toffees have recorded losses of over £260m between 2017 and 2020.

These rules were changed to cope with the coronavirus pandemic and extended to 2021.

The club has not yet posted its accounts for 2021, but losses are anticipated to be in excess of £190 million with £67 million already directly attributed to the pandemic.

Any points deduction would put the club in serious trouble. They are already just 17th in the table, one point above the drop zone

What is going wrong at Everton?

Fans have blamed poor recruitment and a bad run of managers for their dreadful form

They have invested heavily in their side, having spent £450m on new players in the last six years, but have not really reaped the rewards on the pitch. They remain without a major trophy since 1995.

As a result, cash is needed to improve their squad, but a new stadium on Bramley Moore Dock is also hurting their accounts.

More recently, they were forced to cut ties with former Arsenal owner Alisher Usmanov, due to the Uzbek-born Russian's ties with Vladimir Putin invading Ukraine. This is reported to have cost the club around £300 million over the next 20 years.

Lampard is attempting to bring about a positive attacking change to the set-up of his side, away from the rigid football employed by predecessor Rafa Benitez into one that excites fans.

The 'Goodison roar' creates an intimidating atmosphere that the Chelsea legend is hoping to capitalise on. Home form has been good with wins over Brentford and Leeds United in the FA Cup and league respectively and they were unfortunate to lose to league leaders Manchester City, owing so to a defensive mistake and controversial decision by VAR.

Their away form has been nothing short of dismal though and they were outclassed in a clash with Antionio Conte's Spurs earlier this week.

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