 Welcome to Soffy TV. Only got a former Everton captain in the studio with me. We've had a great chat this morning. I've kept him here for hours. Mrs will forget that he lives her own cos I've kept him here so long. But Al, just wanted to talk to you about Everton's situation at the moment. It's not great. It feels like we're getting hip from every single angle, from a point deduction that's put us into the relegation zone, to a takeover that has got a date we don't know about. But let's go to the point deduction first. Have you found this whole process and them using a sport and punishment for something that is in their own rule book? That is about finance. There's nothing to do with sport. Have you found that a bit contradictory? I think it's one that I feel as if the narrative's always getting changed to suit the Premier League. And I feel as if there's a lack of openness about this. I think the Premier League had a great chance last week in terms of being asked to show Everton the minutes or show the committee the minutes. And they've tried to hide behind their own ruling on this. Whereas all it does is add more fuel to the fire. What have you got to hide? Be open and honest. Premier League talk about open, honest, fairness. These are all words that you can't relate to the Premier League because of what they've done. So it's frustrating, really is frustrating. To be honest, I'm sick to death of it all. I really am. I just want it over with. I want some clarity on how we can move forward as a football club rather than getting dragged through the gutter all the time. We deserve better than this. Everton haven't helped themselves and I must stress that. But no matter, even though we've done that, we still deserve not to be treated the way we have done. And I really want the club to be able to move forward now. Whatever the punishment is, let's just get it out. So we can deal with it as a club. It does feel like we're in Pegasus. We had this rule and they changed their own rules. They allowed Everton to use the stadium. To me should never ever be equated to sport and advantage because you're building something that is a community asset to create jobs, whatever, whatever. And you need a stadium to play football in as much as Goddus and Park is fantastic. We do need a new stadium. And yet we entered into this process and halfway through they changed the mind on whether we could use it and whether the interest went on and on, whatever. For me that should have been for the whole period. It was either a no at the start, no, you can't use it, or it was a yes for the duration. I don't know how you can change. And they have said you could and now they have said you couldn't. That's it because it's an independent regulator. It's changed. And then we're hit with a sport and punishment, which I just think makes a mockery of the league when results are there and you start taking points and putting asterisks by teams. Then there's an appeal. I mean why would it, in your opinion, should the point of being left with Everton until the outcome of the appeal? So you know the way they stripped Everton immediately because that altered the playing. The playing conditions for everybody. The fact of innocence until proven guilty. So realistically Everton having been proven guilty. So therefore the points should still be there. And if they are guilty, OK, fair enough, fine. Show us your findings. How do you think you would have coped? I hope there's a player with what's gone on. I know it's difficult because you just have to get on with the job. But you've been a player and a man, hasn't you? So how would you have coped with that? I think Sean Dice has done a really good job in terms of, to be honest, he's been the only one who has been pushed out to answer questions. You haven't been honest. But as players you do have to try and pull it to the back of your mind because you can't affect the procedure what's going on in terms of all this noise and background plough of what's going on. You have to go out there and get results. But you only have to listen to, I think like James Tarkowski's interview last week and he's referred to what's going on. So obviously it is an issue. The players are playing for their Premier League survival, their futures and how we're still talking about this now mid-see coming towards the end of the season and not being resolved. This is a matter of urgency and we're still hanging. The Premier League have still got you hanging by your coattails in terms of a decision. Or it could be Wednesday or it could be Friday. This is real. This is people's lives they're playing about with here. For me, irrespective of what happens in this outcome, he should walk. God, absolutely. He should walk. Can I ask you about, do you think as a player though the pressure would have been different? So if you're an evidence captain, so if you're going out leading the lads out and one minute you're on 29 points and looking at your, and the next minute you're in the bottom three, that must alter the playing conditions you're playing under in terms of pressure. And also if you're looting, and Mars are waiting for an evidence, then all of a sudden you're above evidence. That alters the way they play, doesn't it? That's a psychological effect. You know, as a player, you are ultimately, you go out and play, but you are trying to get to that mark. You know, as evidence players, we're thinking at the beginning of the season, you want to get to that 40 points. That's the target. Whereas, you know, Everton, with, you know, from Christmas time, realistically on 29, 28, 29, you know, and you're only three wins realistically. Cos I think 38 now, you know, is more than safe. You know, so therefore, you've got that buffer, whereas now, instead of looking ahead of you, you're looking behind you, straight away, and even more so now, with them points taken off. You know, so, you go from, you're going from week to week thinking, who have they got next week? Cos if they win, then that could take us above us. If we lose, you know, so that's where the players will think. They might say they won't, but they will. They will. You know, there's no doubt about that. And you've given, you've seen the uptake that Luton have had since them points. Exactly. All of a sudden, they're winning game, they look dead and buried, and now you're going, a Luton, you know, I mean, they had a homebanker on Saturday and it shows the pressure, they end up losing it, but. And then obviously, we've got all that and then you think, it's not even, I think the other thing that's really been switched on the knife is, this isn't even the end of it, because there's another one left. And I mean, how do you feel about evidence of being, regardless of what the outcome is right now, but we've been referred again for something that we're already. Previous to being punished for. Exactly. That's in me. I can't, that's one of the things I can't get me ahead of. Yeah, you've got a three-year cycle. Yeah. But if you punish us, you're still using two of those years again. I mean, this is what makes you understand and all is that the rules are not fit for purpose. Not at all. And we're only just getting towards the stage now, but what are the rules that are potentially there implementing? Who's that suiting? And we all, I think we all know the answers now. Of course, yeah. You know, it's going to be the big six, whatever this big six is. You know, is it a big six in terms of financial clout? Is it a big six in terms of crowd, size of your crowd, size of your club? Now, what is this big six? The rich six. The rich, yeah. You know, and so I think we all know that there's only one thing that these new rules are going to be favoured towards. And we know it's the team who've got the biggest turnovers. And that's what it's going to do. So it's the, you know, when you've really got to look at that, you've got to look at your Man City, Man United, Liverpool, Chelsea. Arsenal. Arsenal and one over Tottenham. Newcastle. Newcastle, Villa. Yeah, yeah. You know, so it's really strictly geared towards because all it's going to do to the teams who are at the other end of the table is make the gap get bigger. Well, even. I mean even. Is that a fairness way to do it? Well, you're saying it now, but even Newcastle manager saying they're going off the shell isle. I mean, I'm really saying you have to sell all the walkins in the summer. And they're teams who are trying to get in and all of a sudden you've got to lose your best asset just to stick in line with these rules that like you just said, arm fit for pitch. You know what, what happened to the days of us speaking about football? You know, because all we're seeing to be speaking about now is is rules, sanctions, lawyers, fair play, you know, FSP. Villa. Yeah, Villa. Don't go. No, no, no. That's a different. A lot of different. Blue cards, colours good. The colours good of the cards. The colours good of the cards. Even with that, I mean, even with that second thing being the appeal, if it was points deductions, the appeal would be heard. And then a decision would be when a week after the season's finished. I mean, how could that have even thrown one of even gone? Yeah. That makes sense. How can you celebrate staying up on the Sunday, the day that you'll be? And a week later you're relegated. That to me again. It just, it, it. Because it's just the fans at the end of the day, isn't it? They say don't punish the fans and the math does that to you. 100%. 100%. But players obviously as well, of course, because it's their livelihoods. And then it, you know, forever. And if ever it were to be relegated, the amount of people who'd lose the jobs, as in staff who are working behind the scenes, I mean, not even players and stuff. It's huge. But who thought you can make a decision a week after the season? Yeah. For me, doesn't make sense, right? Well, as we were saying before, in terms of everything in this predicament, because or situation, because they've built a stadium. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So they're trying to improve as a football club. You know, everything in terms of, they've not always spent on budget. It's because of the payments to the stadium, why they are in this position. You know, some fans don't seem to be able to get their heads around that. Because they're saying that everything is guilty no matter what. Everything is guilty of trying to enhance themselves as a football club by building a new stadium. And that's what they felt foul of. And because the rules have changed from one season to the next. So if the rules are okay last season, why are they not okay this season? So what's changed? Because everything has been working with the Premier League in terms of being coefficient to get themselves in line. So they've been working with them. They've admitted that they were close to the line. So they've held their hands up. Cut the squad. You have to look at Everton's reducements in their wages in terms of player turnover. What they've done to toe the line, it's unbelievable. But we have this Premier League that seem to be able to change rules to suit whatever they feel. Well, they're trying to run scared of an independent regulator. That's all it is. And we sadly have become the sacrificial lamp for it. Now they've hauled forest over the coals as well. And again, I keep saying, losing, taking points off clubs to me is nonsense. And then on top of that, where the face to say, and I remember last time you were in, last year we were talking about how poorly none ever. I don't think we sit here and say ever and have been well done. The previous board we had wasn't fit for purpose. My series made huge mistakes. We know that. We're not sat here saying anything different. There is a take over or an attempt to take over. And even that's just been given a mystery data will decide whenever. And that needs sorting as well for the football club, doesn't it? It does. And it's the same, I think, as fans, as supporters of our football club. We want to answer one way or the other. So give us that answer. If the Premier League, if 777 are not fitting the Premier League's criteria in terms of running a football club, just come on and say. Don't have them hanging on. And more importantly, the most important people, us fans hanging on. Give us a decision. So if it's 777. OK, fine. If it's not, then we can move on and look at something else. Exactly. But don't give us the speech of looking at the best interests of the football club and the fans, making sure this is right. The fact that it's being going on this long tells you something's not meeting the Premier League's guidelines. Or they're being vindictive. Or they're not given information that they are demanding. So that tells you that something's not right. But tell us. Tell us. We need to move on. We are so much getting pulled from one pillar to the next. Whether it's with the club getting taken over or with this debacle, with the points and Everton falling foul of FSP. Yeah. Now what is it? It's shut in that beat. Is it SFP? PSR. Call it PSR. FSP. FSP. You've made the three, but I like it. I like it. I like it. I like it. FSP. You can call it. I can change it. Exa, make it change whatever you want. Change it out. I am going to let Alan go now because he's been here for hours and he's stomach is rung. You need to go and do whatever. So we're going to take a little break. But we are. We're just going to switch the cameras and then me and John will be over there on the desk. So bear with us one bit too long. Thank you very much. Pleasure. Rhaid i'r ffordd. Rhaid i'r ffordd.