Everton will have had “no choice” but to sell Ben Godfrey but his sale would not have been entirely for PSR purposes, according to Paul Brown.
The journalist reported via X (28 June) that the Toffees will not be able to book much of a profit for the defender as he closes in a move to Atalanta and will have instead had to sell him to stop him running down to his contract
Sean Dyche’s side are understood to be set to earn upwards of £10million for the 26-year-old’s services and footage has emerged of him arriving in Italy to undergo his medical and complete his Goodison exit.
Writing on X, Brown said: “Doubt very much that Ben Godfrey has been sold purely for PSR purposes. His net book value last September was £9m, so there won’t be much profit for Everton to book.
“With one year left and not able to guarantee him the minutes he wants, Everton probably had no choice.”
Will Everton sell Ben Godfrey to Atalanta in summer transfer window at Goodison Park?
It is only natural that most would assume this sale has something to do with PSR concerns at Goodison Park, as the Toffees have done everything they can to try and finalise Godfrey’s exit ahead of the Premier League’s deadline.
But if Brown is correct, this sale won’t have a major impact on the Blues’ accounts for the season as they won’t actually be able to claim much of a profit on the defender’s sale once his move to Atalanta is completed.
Whether or not Dyche’s side are in danger of breaching the Premier League’s rules again this season remains to be seen, but those in charge at Goodison will be doing all that they can to avoid a potential third-point deduction.
Hopefully, with or without this latest exit, Everton will have remained within the restrictions so that they can have a season of normality for once next term. Unfortunately, it’s never that easy for the Toffees.