Town boss insists decision to reduce Everton's points deduction doesn't make any difference to Luton

Luton boss Rob Edwards believes that the decision to reduce relegation rivals Everton’s points deduction for breaching Premier League financial rules from 10 to six doesn’t make any difference to his side’s efforts to stay in the top flight this term.

The Toffees were docked 10 points in November for breaking profit and sustainability rules in the three-year period to 2021-22, dropping Sean Dyche’s team into the relegation zone. They had climbed to 17th place, moving one point above Luton following a 1-1 draw at Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, but today’s ruling sees the Goodison Park club leapfrog Nottingham Forest and Brentford to sit in 15th, five points above Town.

A statement from the Premier League said: “An independent Appeal Board has concluded that the sanction for Everton FC’s breach of the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSRs), for the period ending Season 2021/22, will be an immediate six-point deduction. This follows the club’s appeal of an independent Commission’s decision in November 2023 to impose a 10-point deduction for the club’s breach of the PSRs.

“Everton FC appealed the sanction imposed against it on nine grounds, each of which related to the sanction rather than the fact of the breach, which the club admitted. Two of those nine grounds were upheld by the Appeal Board, which has substituted the original points deduction of 10 for six. This revised sanction has immediate effect and the Premier League table will be updated today to reflect this.”

Asked for a reaction during his pre-match press conference ahead of tomorrow’s FA Cup fifth round tie against Manchester City, a defiant Edwards said: “We’ve been going off the league table with no deductions anyway, so it makes no real difference. We were in the bottom three before it, we are now, albeit now we’re behind Forest, four points behind with a game in hand.

"So the situation is the same from our point of view. We’ve been dealing with it without deductions as that can’t be the thing that keeps us in the league. We’ve got to make it in our own hands, that’s what we’ve got to try and do, so in a way it’s good there’s a bit of clarity. We’re in the mix. We’ve spoken openly with the boys on a number of occasions and said we’re not looking at the points deductions, so our task hasn’t changed and I don’t see us having to pick anyone up.”

The league standings could have a different look to them once more in six weeks time, as Everton and Nottingham Forest will find out by early April if they are being charged for alleged breaches in their accounts for 2022-23. Any appeal for that decision will be heard on May 24, the week after the season has concluded, but Edwards didn’t want to be drawn on any potential outcome.

He did though call for any future penalties to be stuck to, ensuring this kind of limbo doesn’t happen again, adding: “Yes there’s more charges, that’s completely out of our hands, out of our control. What’s in our control is our performances, how hard we work and I wish we could control results, but we can’t. So it is important what other people do, but if we don’t do our job it doesn’t matter at all anyway. We knew this was going to be a really difficult task and that’s always been the case and that’s not going to change.

“I won’t comment on what could happen in the future but I suppose clarity on a number of points, as if the rules are there I suppose they need to be adhered to. There needs to be clarity on what the penalty is for that and that will help everyone and as for going forward, that stuff is out of our control and really nothing to do with me at the moment.

“This sort of thing I’ve certainly not experienced before but again it’s hypothetical at the moment as these ones have not happened yet, or if they do or don’t, we don’t know, we’ll concentrate on ourselves.”