The man who hopes to become Everton’s next owner, John Textor, has said that he likes the traditional charm of stadiums like Goodison Park and Fenway Park over the state-of-the-art structures like the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and the Blues’ own at Bramley-Moore Dock.
Speaking with Alan Myers at Sky Sports News, the owner of Lyon, Botafogo and RWD Molenbeek was asked if he thought Everton Stadium, with its increased capacity and enhanced revenue-generating capability, was pivotal to the Club’s future.
“Not for me. I don’t like Tottenham. I go into that stadium and I think it’s too nice. I remember the first couple of games I went there and the people I was with were in this banquet hall, and I thought, ‘this isn’t football’, and I really believe that.
“It’s way too nice a stadium for football. I remember as an owner of Crystal Palace watching them have one of the best games they’ve had in a long time under Patrick Vieira against Everton. We were 2-0 up but then Everton came out and turned it around.
“People were running all over the stadium and I was sat just above the dugout. I was thinking, ‘what a weird stadium, what a weird layout… but what a beautiful stadium’. It’s like going to Fenway Park [in Boston] where you have a big pole in front of you. You can’t see the field but it’s what’s beautiful about it.
He admitted that he would still be interested in buying Everton even if they were staying at Goodison Park but he sees the capital benefits of the new ground at the docks.
“[W]hen we talk about the capital that I have to buy the club, the capital that I have shown I have the ability personally to deploy to make the squad better, I do think I can take this squad well beyond it’s current level of competitiveness alone,” Textor said. “But let’s face it, we don’t want Everton to be bouncing around eighth place forever.
“We want to win a title, and so to do that you need serious capital. I’ve always been very good at accessing it in my life, and so the stadium is huge in that respect.
“The fact that somebody else paid for this incredible place, with these luxury suites and glass VIP rooms, that kind of stuff is amazing from a capital perspective. But from the fans’ perspective, it’s important to them it’s important to me.”