In this week’s Royal Blue column, are Everton FC correspondent Joe Thomas writes on the club’s crucial summer – one that presents opportunities as well as further challenges

The season is not yet over but Everton are already gearing up for a challenging summer.

The headlines this week have been based around the anticipated collapse of the takeover deal with 777 Partners that has struggled on for eight painful months. A resolution to the ownership – and with it the leadership vacuum at the very top of the club – is crucial.

Behind the scenes the club also appears to be positioning itself for further battles of significance. Everton’s final season at Goodison Park will be heavily defined by the events of the coming weeks and what happens before the first ball of the new campaign is even kicked.The key issue is, undoubtedly, the takeover. A flurry of developments around 777 Partners have thrown their plans into jeopardy. High-profile allegations against the outfit lodged in a $600m fraud case in New York remain just that – currently unanswered accusations put forward in a civil case – but have added to concerns over the group’s wider business activities and their ability to find the money needed to first, complete the deal, and second, run the club sustainably.