In February, it was finally confirmed that Farhad Moshiri was set to buy a 49.9% stake in Everton Football Club – much to the delight of most supporters. The Goodison Park faithful have fallen short in recent years and many fans believe that Moshiri’s additional financial support could help take Everton from peripheral contenders to outright favourites for the Premier League crown. After all, Moshiri has previous experience of working in a top-flight football club after spending almost ten years at Arsenal. If nothing else, Moshiri’s knowledge and ‘street smarts’ should help Everton to mature into a better, well-run unit.
Moshiri burst onto the scene at Arsenal when, along with longstanding business partner Alisher Usmanov, he bought around 15% of the club’s shares from former vice-chairman David Dein. At the time, Moshiri and Usmanov were co-owners of Red & White Holdings and immediately set out their intentions to turn Arsenal into one of the biggest clubs on the planet. The Gunners were already a major force in England but had failed to compete in Europe – especially in the Champions League.
Within a month of purchasing shares in Arsenal, Moshiri and Usmanov moved to buy a larger chunk of the club but only managed to increase their share to around 29% by 2012. It was clear that Moshiri wanted much more. He wanted to own an entire football club. He wanted to make major, ground-breaking decisions to enhance the club’s future and that was never going to happen at Arsenal. A move away from the Emirates Stadium made both financial and logical sense. Moshiri split from Usmanov for the first time in almost a decade to complete the takeover at Everton, but what can we expect from him at Goodison Park?
Ultimately, Moshiri is a businessman before anything else. Yes, he will want Everton to do well and achieve great things but he has no emotional attachment to the club. Some fans will wait to see what that means, especially after dealing with the loving, loyal Bill Kenwright for so many years. Although Kenwright will still remain a key component at the club, Moshiri will more than likely take control over the majority of matters at Goodison Park. Everton fans are probably hoping for a healthy balance of financial support and commercial deals, but only if the club’s best interests remain at heart.
Moshiri has already promised Everton fans that he will make a decision on whether to invest heavily in a new stadium, new players and has admitted he will do everything in his power to keep their current crop of talent at the club. The likes of Ross Barkley, John Stones and Romelu Lukaku have all been linked with high-profile moves away from Goodison Park this summer but Moshiri has firmly stated that he will not transform Everton into a selling club and is intent on keeping their top stars on the books. Right now, he has very high expectations for Everton and they may mature into one of the top-flight’s major sides in the not-so-distant future.
New #EFC shareholder
Farhad Moshiri has penned a message to fans in the programme – out now https://t.co/SiRUVKy5JO pic.twitter.com/VceZC0Gqtg
— Everton (@Everton) March 11, 2016
If nothing else, Moshiri will completely change the dynamics at Goodison Park. For a long time, Everton has struggled to inspire confidence and compete with England’s major sides but now, they have the opportunity to compete with the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur in the transfer market and might find it a lot easier to attract top, upcoming talent. In years gone by, Everton has watched their closest rivals to improve and build up a decent squad but now it’s their time to shine. Will they be a title-winning side within the next five years? Probably not but they now have a much greater chance of building a strong, competitive roster at Goodison Park.
Everton fans haven’t had much to cheer about in recent times but this latest bit of news is certainly positive and bodes well for all associated with the club. Roberto Martinez will come under severe pressure as the Toffees’ financial power increases and only time will tell whether he’s the right man to take Everton forward or not. But for now, supporters can bask in the knowledge of increased spending, a potential new stadium and a promise to take Everton from the cusp of glory to titles and triumphs. And in ten years’ time, who knows, the Toffees may just be one of the dominant forces in English football.
