Jamie Carragher believes that that the 10-point deduction meted out to Everton by the Premier League goes too far – but predicts the club will avoid relegation regardless.
The punishment was handed out to the Toffees this week for breaching the league’s profit and sustainability rules, which the club called an “unjust sporting sanction”.
The points deduction is the largest of its kind in English football history, with only five other clubs docked points in the past.
“I think it’s excessive,” Carragher told Sky Sports News. “We’re talking about £20m – it is a small figure when you think of the Premier League now and transfer fees.
“There’s talk about other clubs being upset that Everton were buying players that they shouldn’t have done.
“But they’ve have been working with the Premier League over the last couple of years and I don’t understand why, over the last few transfer windows, the league didn’t say to Everton that they couldn’t bring in a certain player they wanted to?
“It just feels to me, to take points off clubs is really tough. That punishment has to be the last resort. You can have a transfer embargo, a fine, especially for a club like Everton right now, where they have spent over £20m.”
Everton were 14th in the Premier League table, eight points above the relegation zone, prior to the points deduction, but now sit second from bottom, two points from safety. Carragher, however, is confident that they are good enough to overcome this setback and beat the drop to the Championship this season.
“Of course, it will hurt the fans, but it will galvanise them. They will feel the world is against them.
“It won’t make Manchester United’s job any easier when they go to Goodison Park next Sunday.
“If truth be told, if you were ever going to get a points deduction at any point in the Premier League era, it would probably be this one.
“I know Everton are fighting against this, but they will be in the Premier League next season even with this points deduction. I’m pretty certain of that.
“I think Everton will be fine. We all agree there are three teams who have struggled in the Premier League, you feel for them as they have come up from the Championship.
“You talk about the battle for 40 points, if you get over 30 you have a great chance of staying up. That’s no disrespect to Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton, they’ve just found it really difficult for whatever reason.
“If you look at the size of the club of Everton, the team they have and the experience Sean Dyche has and the fact they have won five out of the last seven, they will go into these games in great form.”
Luton Town have jumped out of the dropzone and sit just ahead of 18th-placed Sheffield United in the standings, while Burnley remain bottom on goal difference.
