Everton's prospective new owners eye swoop for banned Premier League chief
The Friedkin Group are currently dealing with chaos at their other club, Roma, but are already putting plans in place for when they take the reins at Everton after striking a deal in September
by Daniel Orme · The MirrorEverton could turn to ex-Tottenham chief Fabio Paratici should a takeover of the Merseysiders be completed.
The Toffees have been locked in talks for months over a change of ownership, with current majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri looking to sell. The Friedkin Group have emerged as the most likely party to succeed him.
They initially opened talks in June this year, only for a deal to fall through. But discussions were resumed in September and a deal was agreed for the group to buy the Merseyside club.
And it appears that they are already putting plans in place for changes behind the scenes. As per La Repubblica, ex-Tottenham chief Paratici has emerged as an option for the Friedkin group.
It has not been suggested what role he would take, but director of football seems the most likely, with Kevin Thelwell out of contract at the end of the season. Paratici previously served as Tottenham’s managing director and sporting director but was hit with a 30-month ban by the FIGC for accusations of false accounting with another of his former clubs Juventus.
He is still in the midst of that suspension but has been allowed to advise clubs on an external basis. The Friedkin group have already turned to him for advice on the situation with current club Roma.
The Serie A side are in a mess having won just three of their opening 12 games. Daniele De Rossi and Ivan Juric have both been sacked, while reports have suggested that former Premier League winner Claudio Ranieri is coming out of retirement in an attempt to steady the ship.
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The Friedkin Group released a statement in September assuring that their purchase of Everton would not distract them from their role at Roma in the face of severe fan criticism. It read: "The potential addition of Everton to our portfolio does not alter our focus on AS Roma. If anything, the multi-club symbiosis will only help Roma.
"Each club in our portfolio operates independently and AS Roma remains at the heart of our football ambitions."
Should Paratici follow the group to Merseyside, he would only be able to take up a full-time role once his ban ends in June 2025. The Italian signed a host of players at Spurs - many of which remain among the first team - including Cristian Romero, Destiny Udogie, Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentancur and Pedro Porro.
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