Things aren't going too well at Everton on or off the pitch, and journalist Paul Brown has discussed a "very messy" situation going on at the club in what is a concerning period for Blues fans.
What is going wrong at Everton?
The Blues have had a really tough few years, finding themselves in back-to-back Premier League relegation battles, managing to survive late in the day on both occasions.
This season has also got off to a difficult start, despite hopes that Sean Dyche would immediately turn things around, with only one point taken from their opening four matches. Everton did at least get off the mark when they drew 2-2 away to Sheffield United in their last match, and they could build on that once the international break is done and dusted.
Away from the on-field action, there is also lots going on that is making for an unsettled situation, with boardroom issues among them, and potential financial sanctions.
With a move to a new stadium coming at the end of this season, these problems need to ease, while relegation to the Championship simply must be avoided in 2023/24, in what would be catastrophic given the expense of the new ground.
How bad have things got?
Speaking to Give Me Sport, Paul Brown explained the situation going on at Everton right now, admitting that supporters have every right to be worried by the many issues happening on Merseyside:
"I think there's a lot to worry about for Everton fans, both on and off the pitch. It can't be good for the club to have all this uncertainty raging off the pitch with an owner who is trying to sell.
"The threat of this Premier League hearing into possible financial sanctions to come in October and various groups trying to buy into the club. None of that can be good for its stability. There is a boardroom full of people who may not be around for much longer. It's unclear what the decision-making processes between the executives. All this is very messy and unsettling for players.
"They made a really bad start to the season. Considering the fixtures they had to open the campaign, you looked at those and you thought, okay, that should be a fairly easy way into the season comparatively and they've messed it up already in quite a big way."
This perfectly outlines just how much is going wrong at Everton at the moment, and it is no surprise that focus on the pitch is arguably being affected because of their circus going on around Dyche and his players.
Issues at the top of the club simply must come to an end sooner rather than later, in order to avoid things really unravelling, while fans will be keeping every finger crossed that the financial sanctions are not too severe.
A lot of "mid table" Premier League clubs seem to be run so smoothy at the moment, from Brentford to Brighton, allowing them thrive both on and off the pitch, but Everton feel like the complete opposite of that, and if things don't change drastically in the coming months, there is the threat of the Blues exiting the top flight.
