Direct questions for Everton’s major shareholder, Farhad Moshiri

by   |   02/12/2021  16 Comments  [Jump to last]

There are many specific questions relating to footballing matters, finance, operations and strategy which can be asked of board members by shareholders at the Annual General Meeting. However, I wanted to address the major shareholder and ask some simple questions which, if answered, would provide a lot of clarity as to his thinking and his plans for the future of our club.

Details as to why these questions are relevant can be found in my series Everton’s Ownership and Leadership, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4.

Governance

Why have you not made changes to the senior management of the company?

Why have you insisted on retaining the services of the Chairman and CEO?

Why are there no independent or non-executive directors to provide oversight and scrutiny?

What changes to governance are you prepared to make?

Recruitment

Who has responsibility for player recruitment at Everton?

What is the structure and process of a typical incoming transfer?

What is the strategy in terms of building a competitive squad, that is sustainable (financially) and offers future value for further squad development through re-sale value?

What changes to the recruitment process and strategy are you prepared to make?

Director of Football

What is the role of the Director of Football at Everton?

What authority does he have, who does he report to?

What control and influence does he have over the Academy given there is an academy director?

What changes and clarification of the Director of Football model at Everton are you prepared to make?

Finance

What is the true financial state of the club in relation to Premier League Profit & Sustainability?

What is the plan to reduce losses, to become cash-flow positive, and a return to profitability? In the absence of such, what is the future funding requirement and how will that be covered?

What is the position regarding stadium financing? How close to completion is the private placement / lending facility?

Recovery

What are your immediate plans to restructure the management of the business? To provide leadership, experience and competency that reverses the inexorable decline of our great club?

There is a series of more detailed questions relating to footballing matters, operations and specific events which the Chairman and board must answer at the Annual General Meeting. They will be published after the Annual Report & Accounts are released.

I stress that the above are questions for Farhad Moshiri to answer. I understand he is under no legal obligation to provide answers to anyone at all. However, for the benefit of the club and in acknowledgement that transparency and accountability are vital components of the future recovery and restructuring process that is necessary, he would be well served to provide them.

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Reader Comments (16)

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Bobby Mallon
1 Posted 02/12/2021 at 20:44:04
Paul.

Send those questions to Jim White and he can text them to Moshiri, because that is the only way he will answer your valid questions.

Derek Moore
2 Posted 02/12/2021 at 20:59:41
Transparency, that magic word again.
Jack Convery
3 Posted 02/12/2021 at 22:16:08
Straight forward questions which need straight forward and full answers. If no answers are forthcoming, why are you keeping them from us? Or are the answers awkward in the extreme – one begins to wonder.

Come on, Moshiri, clear the air and tell us, what the proverbial is going on at EFC???

Dale Self
4 Posted 03/12/2021 at 19:25:23
Go, Pau,l Go! I'm telling you though, dude's got mic fright. He's over his head and quickly finding out what a shark tank it can be. He's fucking shriveling at a moment when he could demonstrate some leadership that would certainly improve his image.

As long as he allows Bill to put stuff out in the press, he is showing what an absolute rider he is in this whole affair. If he fires Brands, he exposes himself for setting up a stuffed shirt operation.

The DOF function was merely for firewalling the bigs. If this continues as is, I would like to see us all get with the most reputable one left, Rafa. I know it's a big ask, I was against as well until we married.

Bottom line: Potter would not have the skills to deal with Moshiri, et al. This is above and beyond what is on the manager's resume or how someone built up a smaller club.

Maybe Potter would be the one to follow Rafa but for now this guy has the best understanding of what's wrong and can represent the club in front of the mic, taking the tough questions without further damaging us.

Paul Hewitt
5 Posted 03/12/2021 at 19:40:39
Apparently Bill has called an emergency Board meeting tonight.
Brian Murray
6 Posted 03/12/2021 at 19:57:01
I'd be a lot more exited if Moshiri called the emergency meeting and borrowed a prop of Bill dressed as the Grim Reaper with a taxi waiting back to The Empire.
Tom Harvey
7 Posted 05/12/2021 at 22:31:16
This in the Echo by Phil Kirkbride:

"The signing of Alex Iwobi, it must also be stressed, was not on Brands. The director of football was certain the idea of signing the Arsenal man, at such a price at that late in the window, would quickly die down, but Moshiri pressed on with the signing. Everton paid an initial £28m for Iwobi who was on a yacht off the coast of Dubai when the call came in."

We have an absolute Mr Bean of an owner, he's clueless and a danger to the club.

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/marcel-brands-everton-exit-breaking-22372584

Rich Pembo
8 Posted 05/12/2021 at 23:20:18
These are nearly all the right questions to ask.
There's a couple more specific points it would be unlikely to get a straight answer to...

Usmanov - what's in it for him?
How long has he really been involved and why does he think £30m was a good deal for the naming rights of the training ground?

How come we have overpaid for nearly every transfer? If we were trying to break FFP regs, how could we have done it quicker?

Eyebrows were sky high at most moves.
Bolasi £30m?
Sigurdsson £45m?
Iwobi £28m?
Keane £25m?
Moise £28m?
Richarlison £40m?
5 of these were tried and tested in the PL so it was pretty clear that if everyone thought we were overpaying, there's a fair chance we were.

Have you used Everton for money laundering or did your negotiating team just know less than the average fan?

If it doesn't sniff right, it probably isn't.
True or false?

Jerome Shields
9 Posted 05/12/2021 at 23:31:31
Begining to think that Moshiri has read this article before me and starting to answer these questions.
Derek Moore
10 Posted 05/12/2021 at 23:35:23
Mr Pembo is about the fifth person in the last twenty four hours to bring this up. I've had similar thoughts myself, but they're only suspicions.

It squares the circle so neatly as an explanation it's hard to not run with it intellectually. Well, the only way a club ends up in a mess like this is actually by design

Does anyone have real meat to put on the bone here?

I used to work with a fellow who once worked for Roman Abaramovich personally. The stories he would tell me. Similar in tone to what Mr Pembo mentioned...would love to hear some genuine dirt as opposed to mere suspicions about Everton though.

Rich Pembo
11 Posted 05/12/2021 at 23:42:51
Derek, the elephant in the room is the stadium build.
How does spending that amount of money ever pay back in the lifetime of the stewardship?
The club has to be flipped.

Not necessarily dodgy, it's commonplace to pick up a cheap asset and speculate to accumulate, but surely this is about money. If it was just moshiri you could possibly believe in the romance of a play thing and leaving a mark behind. But with usminov in tow, these guys surely have to be looking at an exit strategy or some financial angle.

Maybe I'm too cynical but billionaires are not easily parted with their money in the real world.

Derek Moore
12 Posted 05/12/2021 at 23:58:25
Fascinating Mr Pembo.

FWIW, my mate who worked for Abramovich - he got a Rolex Submariner as a leaving gift! - seemed to be under the impression that Abramovich actually had some silent partners at chelsea, silent partners from Mother Russia.

You know, the sort of guys who would love to have an attachment and connection to a glamorous, mega successful football club, but can't be bothered with all that paperwork, documentation and other stuff. Too much fag.

Rich Pembo
13 Posted 06/12/2021 at 00:39:43
See I just don't know if I get that concept. I get the status thing for the Chelsea front man but what's in it for the silent partners?
It would be the same for Mosh if he was any good at it, you could understand the glory thing.
Why would you sink hundreds of millions into anything for no recognition and no return?
The whole PL football thing is the emperor's new clothes. The Saudi purchase of the skunks is no different.

None of it makes any sense unless you run it like the yanks have indebted the mancs or sportsdirect used Newcastle as a cash cow.

Derek Moore
14 Posted 06/12/2021 at 01:03:36
Mr Pembo, my mates subtext is that the silent partners were trying to get their ill gotten funds out of Russia, and Abramovichs club was a method to turn dirty money into the nice clean freshly laundered stuff.

That in effect, Abramovich was just the front man for a criminal syndicate. Similar to how the mafia got hold of Las Vegas casinos in the seventies, through a front man and shady front money.

That's the sort of dirt I'm talking about.

Rich Pembo
15 Posted 06/12/2021 at 09:36:24
Well quite. There aren't many other logical conclusions!
Stephen Vincent
16 Posted 07/12/2021 at 13:35:16
Unfortunately I am not a shareholder, but if memory serves didn't the 2006 companies act enshrine certain safeguards and rights for all shareholders no matter how small.

Those rights include:
The right to inspect all minutes and resolutions.
The right to inspect all directors' service contracts.
The ability to make a claim on behalf of the company against a director for breach of trust or negligence.
I am sure there are more.

There are still many small shareholders on the shareholders register. Perhaps we should crowd fund someone.


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