Director of football Brands leaves Everton after spending £300m
Marcel Brands has left his position as Everton’s director of football after coming under severe pressure amid the sense of crisis enveloping the club.
The Dutchman has been blamed for a series of expensive transfer deals that have not worked with Everton languishing in 16th place in the Premier League, having earned just two points from a possible 24.
There had been speculation that Rafael Benitez might be replaced but while the manager is also under intense scrutiny, and has to quickly turn around the team’s fortunes, it is understood he continues to receive backing. For now.
Brands’s departure may, in fact, sharpen the focus further on the former Liverpool manager, who was a controversial appointment but has also made it clear he is unhappy with aspects of the club and has carried out a review. It has already led to the departure of Danny Donachie, the head of medical.
Brands only signed a new threeyear contract in April but, over the weekend, agreed a severance package with majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri ahead of tonight’s crucial home match against Arsenal.
It is understood that Everton will eventually seek to replace Brands but, for the time being, it would appear his departure will strengthen Benitez’s power base at the club he joined in the summer ahead of the January transfer window. He will hope to not only have funds available but control over who is bought and sold.
However, Benitez is also in a difficult position because while there is sympathy towards him from Moshiri and the club’s board, that will not last if results do not improve.
It is also unclear how much control Brands exerted at Everton where he often appeared a marginalised figure, especially when it came to the appointment of managers and some signings, with Moshiri accused of interfering.
Brands, who previously worked as the director of football at PSV Eindhoven, took over from Steve Walsh in 2018. More than £500million has been spent at Everton since Moshiri gained control in 2016 and, although much of that was spent under Brands’s predecessor, he has come under scrutiny for a number of underwhelming transactions. It is estimated that around £300million has been spent during his time at the club with failures including the £25million outlay on midfielder Jean-philippe Gbamin.
Everton have not won a league game since beating Norwich City on Sept 25 and, after Arsenal, they have away games against Crystal Palace and Chelsea and are just five points above the relegation places.
Meanwhile, several high-profile Everton fan groups have called on supporters attending tonight’s game against Arsenal to walk out during the 27th minute.
A statement from the groups said: “The incompetence from the top at Everton Football Club cannot continue.”
Everton have not yet made an official statement confirming Brands’s departure.