Andy Burnham says it's a 'great day' as Everton takeover confirmed

Andy Burnham said "a major cloud has lifted over Everton" after Farhad Moshiri agreed to sell the club. Everton announced the agreement of the sale of Mr Moshiri’s 94.1% stake in the club to the Friedkin Group on Monday (September 23).

The Friedkin Group, who are the owners of Italian side AS Roma, have come back in for the Blues after previously ending talks in July following a period of exclusivity. Mr Moshiri took control of Everton in 2016 and his period at the helm has been tumultuous, with the Blues facing a succession of relegation battles.

The Iranian billionaire has been trying to offload his shares for over two years. The Kaminski Group, MSP Capital, 777 Partners and most recently John Textor all have been in talks over that time.

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Subject to regulatory approval, the Friedkin Group will become the club's new owners. A spokesperson for the group said: "We are pleased to have reached an agreement to become custodians of this iconic football club. We are focused on securing the necessary approvals to complete the transaction."

Mr Burnham, the Merseyside-born Mayor of Greater Manchester, is an Everton fan and season ticket holder at Goodison Park. Speaking to the ECHO at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool, he welcomed the news of the sale agreement.

He told the ECHO: "It feels like a major cloud has lifted over Everton Football Club. We don't know everything about these owners, so you always have to be careful. But of the prospective owners, these seemed like the best fit for Everton. Obviously, they're already running Roma, so that creates confidence.

"It feels like it's a great day for Everton Football Club and for all of our supporters, who have just been living - in the last four or five years - with this sense that the club doesn't have a path, a path to the promised land of Bramley-Moore. We do have that path now. It's an exciting day for everyone associated with Everton Football Club."

Mr Burnham also expressed his thanks to the staff at Everton for their work on this deal. He said: "I would like to pay tribute to Colin Chong, the interim CEO, who I think, in the most difficult circumstances, has done a really great job in steering things through. All of the staff at the club who have worked hard to make this happen. On behalf of Evertonians, I would just like to thank them.

"On the face of it, this is a really encouraging development. I will now be asking the games authorities and the regulators to speed up the approval of this takeover - let Everton go into a new era now. We've got a reputable interested party, let's move this club into a new era and let's start with three points on Saturday."

At last year's Labour conference, Mr Burnham spoke the ECHO after Miami-based private investment firm 777 Partners agreed to purchase Farhad Moshiri’s 94.1% stake in Everton and become the owners of the club. Mr Burnham said that deal should face "scrutiny and challenge" to ensure 777 were appropriate owners. However, the deal between Mr Moshiri and 777 fell through in June of this year.

Everton play Crystal Palace at Goodison Park on Saturday (September 28). The Toffees are looking for their first win of the Premier League campaign.