Sheffield United's relegation rivals Everton, Nottingham Forest 'expect' to be hit with FFP sanctions as points deduction possible

Two of Sheffield United's Premier League relegation rivals - Everton and Nottingham Forest - are 'expecting' to be found in breach of the competition's financial regulations, according to a report.

Everton and Forest both sit above Chris Wilder's side in the Premier League table with Everton eight points ahead and sitting in 17th while Forest are sat 15th and 11 points above the Blades. The Athletic reports both clubs are expecting to be sent to an independent commission for punishment due to breaches of the Premier League's profitability and sustainability rules.

The two clubs are set to be told on Monday if they have breached regulations, which allow clubs to lose a maximum of £105m over three seasons. If found guilty, the pair are at risk of a points deduction.

Everton have already been docked 10 points this season for a financial fair play (FFP) breach. They were found guilty of breaching profit and sustainability rules relating to the 2021-22 season and hit with the hefty deduction earlier in the campaign. Without the deduction they would be sat 12th in the table and 11 points clear of the bottom three, but instead sit just one place above the relegation places.

Although, if the punishment had been handed out last season or the previous season - when the breaches occurred - they would have found themselves relegated to the Championship. The Toffees have lodged an appeal against their deduction from earlier in the season with an appeal board set to hear the case as Everton believe the number of points docked to be “wholly disproportionate and unjust."

The speed of the investigation against Everton and Nottingham Forest is due to new guidelines that aim to hand out punishments for any potential breaches in the same season that clubs are charged. Manchester City have been charged with an alleged 115 breaches of financial regulations but their case is not set to be heard until much later this year, almost two years after the charges were announced by the Premier League.