Everton and Liverpool are set to join Manchester City and other Premier League clubs in a vote over Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules on Friday
Simon Jordan has criticised Manchester City for their lobbying of the Premier League to postpone tomorrow’s vote over revised Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules. Despite these protestations, Everton, Liverpool and the rest of the English top-flight seem set to have a decisive meeting.
Tensions have risen off-field after both the Premier League and Man City claimed victory from a landmark commission ruling in October which concluded that while there was a need for APT regulation, some elements of the framework breached EU competition law. As a result league officials have drawn up a new proposal, but the reigning champions remain unhappy.
A reported letter sent last week by Man City to Everton, Liverpool and other member clubs explained their stance over the new revisions, still believing they contravene the commission’s judgement.
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They also accused the Premier League of rushing through the consultations to leave clubs ‘voting blind’ when they meet in London on Friday.
“You can’t have clubs writing to the Premier League the way Man City are, in the tone and texture,” Jordan blasted on talkSPORT. “The tone and texture that Man City are writing to the Premier League – and in fact the way the Premier League are responding – is not in-keeping with the nature of the relationship that should exist.
“The Premier League board is there to serve the clubs and the clubs are shareholders in this entity. This confrontational attitude is not great, not particularly productive but it is where it is.
“People will suggest that is because Man City have been attacked by the Premier League and there is a conspiracy of a cartel who want to keep them down, UEFA are a part of it and now the Premier League are a part of it – nothing to do with the way if Man City maybe cooperated more and were transparent in their investigations, there wouldn’t be so much perspective around what Man City are and what Man City aren’t.”
However, moving the discussion towards the current Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) implemented in the Premier League – the very ones that Everton fell foul of last season – Jordan actually aligned with Liverpool’s current closest title challengers to suggest that they are in fact not fit for purpose.
He continued: “I think there is a resistance to the thinking that new money can buy its way to the top of the tree and upset the cartel. I don’t think that was what PSR was brought in for, I believe now that’s what it is and ultimately I have changed my position slightly.
“I thought it was a force for good having been an owner subject to fan and media demand to keep emptying more and more money into a football club without controls and governance. I have felt that PSR gave it that – it hasn’t.
“What it has done is created a landscape in which football is now constantly in a situation where new clubs can’t assume the opportunity, the trap door has been pulled behind it, the last ones off the taxi rank were Man City and now Newcastle are suffering.”
He concluded: “Man City are right and I actually believe there is an argument to be made that the entirety of football is anti-competitive because the Premier League in of itself is anti-competitive.
“How can you have a pyramid in this country where you’ve got 92 football clubs and 91 percent of the revenue goes to 20 clubs? That by it’s very definition is anti-competitive.”
At tomorrow’s vote, the new APT revisions will require 14 out of 20 clubs to vote in favour in order to pass. So far Man City and Aston Villa have spoken publicly against them, both wishing to see the motion postponed until a later date.
