The Athletic’s Everton correspondent Patrick Boyland says that a claim by The Financial Times that Alisher Usmanov brokered a deal to appoint Carlo Ancelotti as the club’s new manager is false.
What’s the word, then?
Well, The Financial Times published an interview on Friday with the billionaire suggesting that he is ready to invest in the Merseyside outfit where his friend Farhad Moshiri is already a majority shareholder.
The FT said in the article that the 66-year-old, who previously sold his stake in Arsenal in 2018, was instrumental in bringing the Italian to Goodison Park, with the actual interview with the newspaper taking place just a week before the appointment of the Italian as Marco Silva’s successor.
However, speaking in a Q&A with Toffees supporters on Friday, Boyland said that part of the story is false.
He wrote: “We understand that the Financial Times line about direct involvement in recruiting Ancelotti is false, but Usmanov has obviously opened the door to stadium naming rights deal and potential future partnership…”
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Exciting times for Everton
While Usmanov may not have had any direct involvement in Ancelotti’s appointment, you do have to wonder whether he could still have a big part to play during the Italian’s reign at Goodison should he end up investing.
He is richer than Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich according to The Sunday Times’ 2019 rich list, which is a sign of the type of money he could potentially put into the club – should it go into their transfer kitty, it could clearly help take Everton to the next level.
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It will be interesting to see what happens next with Usmanov saying the Merseyside club’s proposed new Bramley-Moore Dock Stadium could even be called the “USM Arena” as part of a venue naming rights deal.
In the meantime, Everton fans will have to continue to dream of what could be coming next.
In other Everton news, some Toffees fans have urged the club to sign a 23-year-old Premier League player with outrageous 2019/20 stats…