Points deduction ‘mess’ confuses Nuno and Dyche

Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo has described the current points deductions under the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules (PSR) as a “mess”.

Forest – who are 17th in the table – were given a four-point sanction for breaching PSR last month and are awaiting the results of an appeal.

Fellow strugglers Everton have also been deducted points this season and were handed a 10-point penalty imposed last November, which was cut down to six points on appeal.

The Toffees were plunged into further trouble earlier this week after receiving a further two-point deduction and Nuno said about Forest’s penalty: “That’s a lot of uncertainty, the appeal going on, we’re still waiting, so there’s nothing much to say about that. Let’s focus on what we have to focus (on) and wait.

“I’ve never experienced this situation, I think none of us has experienced this before. It’s a mess, isn’t it?

“There are so much things going on that we cannot clearly know what’s going to happen, so let’s leave it this way and wait.

“Honestly, me and the players are only focused on our tasks.”

The points deductions and subsequent appeals, if successful, could change the landscape at the bottom of the Premier League table, where Forest are fighting for survival.

With the current deductions, Everton now sit just two points above Forest in 16th and Nuno’s side are lingering just above the relegation zone with only goal difference separating them from 18th-placed Luton.

Nuno comes up against his old club Wolves on Saturday at the City Ground and the Forest boss admits the points deductions have been a distraction for .

“It’s played (on players’ minds) since the decision came around. It’s always there,” Nuno added.

“What you are trying is (to) put (it) away from our focus and just pay attention to the things we can control.

“But it’s there, we are talking about this, we read, the players know, the fans are aware so what we expect is sooner than later the final decision comes so we can finish the season and see what’s happening.

“It’s very important that we have the decision sooner, it’s better for us, it’s better for the competition so it doesn’t create mess, it doesn’t create confusion and uncertainty because this is what we’re experiencing now.

“(There is) so much going on, so much talking, appeal after appeal, we don’t know. Like yourselves, we wait and see what’s happening.

“For us, it’s vital we focus on our tasks and the players’ tasks is to play and be focused on the game, try to ignore everything else.”

It emerged on Thursday that Sheffield United will start next season on minus two points if they are relegated to the Championship.

An independent commission has imposed a two-point penalty for the start of the next campaign they are under the English Football League’s jurisdiction, after the Blades defaulted on payments to other clubs during their promotion season in 2022-23.

A further two-point penalty has been suspended until the end of that same season, the EFL said. This will be triggered if United default on any payment to another club under a transfer or compensation agreement for more than five business days from the due date of payment.

The EFL said the defaults which led to the sanction were cumulatively in excess of 550 days. The club also agreed to pay the EFL’s costs of £310,455.

Sheffield United are currently bottom of the Premier League, nine points off safety with seven games left to play.

The club said in a statement: “While disappointed to have the deduction imposed upon the return to the EFL and highlighting that awaiting overdue monies from several other clubs affected Sheffield United’s financial situation, the club took the view that it was better to reach an agreement which minimised the risks of a higher deduction or further transfer embargoes being imposed, and being distracted by lengthy and costly legal proceedings.

“The club is now in a position to close this matter and concentrate on the future.”

Meanwhile, Sean Dyche has called on Everton to show the same positive reaction to their second points deduction of the season as the first.

Everton’s best spell of the season came shortly after the initial sanction, with the Toffees’ four-match winning run including a 2-0 success against Monday’s opponents Chelsea.

Manager Dyche said: “The last time we got a knock everyone pulled together, and I think that’s important to remind yourself. The fans were terrific in a new reality. There’s another one now.

“Everyone went, ‘hang on a minute, the badge is more important than anything’, and I still feel the same. Myself, the players, the staff all pulling together, and the fans as well to make sure we look after ourselves and we look after the club.

“The restart is Chelsea. A reaction to the news is important, a positive reaction. The time for fault and blame is gone. It’s the way society works, everyone wants fault and blame for everything but we’ve got to park it.

“What’s done is done. We’ve just got to stay in line, stay connected, and take on the next challenge. The club’s had a few knocks recently, let’s all pull together and get it done.”

Everton will appeal against the latest sanction and, while Dyche does not want to dwell on what has happened, a sense of injustice remains.

A perceived lack of consistency has frustrated club and fans alike, and Dyche said: “I think it’s difficult because of the confusion.

“I don’t think it’s just Evertonians. I travel a lot and football fans generally come up to me and say, ‘What’s that all about?’ They’re confused by it, we’re a bit confused by it, I think that’s fair to say.

“But, whether we are or we’re not, there’s still a job in hand and the focus has to go back to the current situation.

“Therefore our focus is on the next round of games coming up. I spoke to the players after it, reminded the staff about it, the truth of the moment, which is to stay focused on the job in hand.”

Ongoing doubt, meanwhile, surrounds the club’s proposed takeover by 777 Partners, with a further delay reported this week.

Dyche sees no reason to panic, saying: “I’m certainly not in that world but I can only imagine buying a football club’s not an easy business. There must be so many different things to go through and so many checks that have to be done.

“It’s taking more time, that’s the way it goes. I certainly am not involved in that level of what we do here. The rest is just a wait-and-see situation.”

The fresh points deduction made last weekend’s win over Burnley, their first in the league since December, look even more important, with goal-shy Dominic Calvert-Lewin netting his second in as many games.

There is a fitness doubt over the striker for Monday’s game after he missed training on Thursday with a hamstring issue.

But Dyche expects him to be fit, saying: “He’s just got a minor niggly hamstring, which we’re just being ultra careful with. But he thinks he’s on top of it and the medical team are as well.”