Everton football fan Michael Flanagan has been banned from attending matches for three years, prompting fellow supporters to joke that he looks happy about missing the club's upcoming games.
Merseyside Police issued the 57 year old from Walton with the football banning order on Tuesday following an assault at Everton's home ground, Hill Dickinson Stadium, in December last year.
Police shared a mugshot of Flanagan on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. In the photograph, the banned supporter appears to be sporting a wry smile.
Transfer window disappointment
The police post quickly went viral online. Everton fans used the opportunity to joke about the Premier League club's disappointing business during the recent summer transfer window, suggesting Flanagan was relieved to be missing out on watching the team.
Everton Football Club, founded in 1878, is a professional football team based in Liverpool that competes in the top tier of English football. Despite a proud history, the club's supporters have endured several difficult seasons recently, often battling against relegation from the Premier League amid off field financial challenges.
The summer transfer window is the designated period during the off season and early weeks of the new campaign when football clubs are permitted to buy and sell players. Deadline day, the final day of the window, is traditionally a frantic period of last minute negotiations.
On transfer deadline day, Everton sold star forward Iliman Ndiaye to current Premier League champions Manchester City for a fee of £65 million. Manchester City are one of the wealthiest clubs in the world and have dominated English domestic football in recent years.
Everton also transferred striker Beto to Italian Serie A side Fiorentina for £15 million. Fiorentina, based in Florence, compete in the top division of Italian football.
The Merseyside club, traditionally nicknamed the Toffees, attempted to replace the departing players by signing forwards Folarin Balogun and Joshua Zirkzee. However, both of these proposed transfers collapsed at the 11th hour, failing to cross the line before the transfer window officially closed.
These failed moves leave Everton with only one recognised striker, Thierno Barry, for the remainder of the football season. The club also has an equally concerning shortage of players in the full back defensive positions.
Social media reaction
Reacting to the police photograph, one fan joked on X: "Looks absolutely made up he's not having to go for 3 years."
Another supporter commented on Flanagan's expression, writing: "Look how happy he is the lucky b*****d."
A third person added: "Luckiest Evertonian on the planet hahaha," while another pessimistic supporter wrote: "Done him a favour…."
A further social media user posted with laughing emojis: "He looks buzzing!"
The Merseyside Police post has chalked up over 750,000 views at the time of writing, providing a source of humour for some disgruntled fans who are not looking forward to the rest of the football season.
Stadium assault
While many fans joked about the image, plenty of other supporters reacted with disappointment and anger towards Flanagan's actions inside the stadium.
Flanagan pleaded guilty to Section 39 assault at Sefton Magistrates Court. A Section 39 assault is a common assault charge under English law, covering acts where someone intentionally or recklessly uses unlawful force against another person.
The court heard that Flanagan had been involved in an argument with a man standing in front of him during Everton's match against London club Arsenal on December 20. Arsenal are a major football club based in North London and are traditionally one of the strongest teams in the Premier League.
The incident took place in the Upper South Stand of the stadium. Flanagan pushed the supporter backwards, resulting in the victim rolling over at least a dozen rows of seats down the stand.
The victim suffered a series of minor injuries as a result of the fall. The court ordered Flanagan to complete 140 hours of unpaid work and to pay £750 in compensation to the person he assaulted.
Flanagan was also instructed to pay £400 in court costs and a £114 victim surcharge. These financial penalties are intended to punish the offender and compensate the victim for the harm caused by the offence.
Police condemnation
Match Commander for the game, Superintendent Chris Barnes, said: "This was a dangerous and shocking incident which escalated quickly and resulted in the victim being pushed backwards over rows of fans below him."
Superintendent Barnes explained how a worse outcome was avoided. He said: "Miraculously he was not seriously injured, largely owing to the fact that he eventually came to a stop on top of the shoulders of another supporter sitting a number of rows beneath him."
He added: "This reckless behaviour could have been far worse, not least for those fans who were in the line of his fall. Fellow supporters were understandably shocked by what they witnessed and quickly alerted officers to what had happened."
"Flanagan is now paying the price for his reckless behaviour, and this ban prevents him from attending any football game in the country for three years," Superintendent Barnes said.
Football Banning Orders are preventative measures issued by the courts following a football related offence. They are strictly enforced to stop violence and disorder, meaning banned individuals cannot attend any regulated football match in the United Kingdom.
Superintendent Barnes concluded by stating: "I hope this sentencing sends a clear message that such conduct will not be tolerated, and acts as a warning to others that we will put you before the courts to be prosecuted."
