David Moyes Confirms Everton's Transfer Plans Amid Record Compensation Bill

David Moyes insists Everton’s record compensation bill to Burnley will not derail the club’s summer transfer plans – and says he has been given clear assurances from the board that recruitment will continue as planned.

The Premier League ordered Everton this week to pay around £35m to Burnley over breaches of Profit & Sustainability Rules during the 2021/22 season, a landmark figure in the growing financial battles at the top of the English game.

Burnley argued they would have avoided relegation had Everton’s points deduction – imposed in 2023/24 – been applied in the season the breaches related to. The Clarets pursued their case and won. Everton, already docked eight points last term for PSR offences, now face a huge financial hit and have launched an appeal, branding the ruling “fundamentally flawed in both law and fact.”

Moyes: ‘They told me it wouldn’t have any effect’

Speaking on talkSPORT, Moyes did not hide his frustration at the verdict but stressed that, as things stand, his transfer budget remains intact.

“I’m not up to the situation exactly how it is and obviously the club are challenging it at the moment as well, which is really important, but it’s really disappointing,” he said.

The Scot admitted the ruling could have wider consequences across the pyramid.

“I don’t know if this opens a huge can of worms with other events as well. Teams who have maybe not got promoted, for example, because the Premier League teams are having problems with PSR.

“I felt that we had paid our dues, if that’s right, and we had done it already, but for this to come back to us, it feels like an individual case.

“But I don’t know if it’s going to open up more things for other clubs to do something similar.”

The key question, though, is what it means for his squad. When pressed directly on whether the compensation bill will bite into his summer business, Moyes was unequivocal about what he has been told.

“They told me no,” he said. “They told me that it wouldn’t have any effect on it and look I was aware of this probably four or five weeks ago when it was happening that this would be the case.

“So the answer to that is I really hope it has no effect on what we’re going to do in the summer.”

Everton’s tightrope and a warning to the Premier League

Moyes is trying to build on what he still describes as a largely positive campaign, even if the finish left a sour taste.

“I’m hoping that it doesn’t because last season, as you rightly say, we had a good season except the last month or so when we sort of blew up and we were in a really, really strong position.

“So if it’s anything I hope it’s a message to the Premier League. It’s so difficult. If you don’t do well you can find yourself in trouble again. We don’t want to be back in those situations we were in the past.”

That line captures the tension at Goodison. Everton have only just started to feel like a club edging away from the relegation trapdoor and the constant grind of PSR battles. Now they are staring at a bill that could climb towards £40m once legal fees are included, according to some supporters’ estimates.

Moyes, though, stressed that the ownership were not blindsided by the risk.

“My understanding is that the Friedkins were aware of this when they were buying the club and there was a possibility this could happen,” he said.

The message from the manager is clear: the plan remains to strengthen, not retreat. The reality of a record compensation payment, an appeal process, and a fanbase wary of more financial turbulence will test that resolve.

Everton want this summer to be about building a squad for Europe, not balancing the books for a courtroom. The next few months will reveal which battle really defines their season.