Manchester City

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Former Manchester City midfielder midfielder Jim Whitley says he "feels for" the club's supporters after the guilty verdict in relation to breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations.

Whitley made 47 appearances for City in all competitions during the late 90s.

"It has been quite tough because I've had everyone shouting 'cheat' at me all of a sudden," he told BBC Radio Manchester.

"It's got nothing to do with me, and I was proud to wear the shirt when I did.

"However, it is difficult because I think about what the players are going to take at all the away games. It is going to be so difficult for them to take it.

"When something like that happens which is out of your hands, the only thing you can do is play football.

"City still have money, they are still in the running for a lot of trophies, and I think players will unite more so than anyone and stick together and be a team.

"I feel for the fans right now because they're going to take a lot of stick. They are the ones who have been on the road since they were watching me play when it wasn't so great. They are the ones who will suffer and take the most stick.

"It's hard to take and hard to see because I don't think a lot of fans expected this to happen, in the way it has in particular. The amount of words going round to describe City is quite hard to take I have to say."

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This week's More Than The Score podcast - brought to you by the BBC's World Service - takes a look at the Manchester City case from a global perspective.

Delyth Lloyd is joined by Kieran Maguire, professor of football finance at the University of Liverpool, and Simon Chadwick, professor of Afro-Eurasian sport at Emlyon Business School.

They discuss how the situation is being viewed in the Middle East, the potential impact on UK-UAE relationships, possible punishments and where this ranks amongst the biggest sporting scandals ever.

Listen to the show below or on BBC Sounds here

Liverpool and Paris St-Germain are interested in signing Rayan Cherki from Manchester City should the 23-year-old France midfielder become available. (Teamtalk), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

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A number of Premier League clubs want Manchester City to be hit with both "retrospective punishments" and sanctions for the future for their mass financial rule-breaking, sources have told BBC Sport.

An independent commission found City guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons.

City have appealed against the verdict, while the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is poised to look at the findings to see if there may be any suggestions of potential misconduct.

However, there is said to be a consensus among a group of top-flight club executives that if City's appeal is unsuccessful, the sanctions should make reparations for the period when they broke the rules, while also limiting their powers in future.

There is also a feeling from at least four Premier League boardrooms that a "one-hit" points deduction resulting in relegation to the Championship would be an insufficient punishment given the severity of City's wrongdoing.

Read more on what rival clubs want

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Manchester City reporter Simon Bajkowski from the Manchester Evening News says the guilty verdicts handed down to the club relating to breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations are likely to have a "galvanising" effect on Enzo Maresca's side.

City travel to rivals Liverpool on Sunday in their first match back after an international break during which the verdict was announced.

"It's more likely to have a positive effect on the players than it is to have a negative impact," Bajkowski told BBC Radio Manchester.

"It's a get-out-of-jail-free card all season for the players and Maresca if they want it, but I don't think they will take it.

"They will do everything on the pitch to win titles for City - then, if they are taken away, that is nothing the players can control. What they can control is being the best team in the Premier League this season and that will be the message."

The visit to Anfield marks a meeting with the side who have three times finished runners-up to City in the Premier League, including once during the period covered by the verdict.

"It's going to be interesting," Bajkowski added. "It's one of those games where the whole world will be watching to see what happens.

"Liverpool at Anfield this season have been a bit sticky and not gelled yet under Andoni Iraola. It's traditionally a very tough place for City to go. It was made tougher in the Pep era as he wound up the fans and got into those games.

"Whether Maresca does the same or tries to keep the noise out of it will be interesting to see. Before a ball is kicked, all eyes will be on the Manchester City bus, whether that makes it safely in and what reception that gets.

"Then it is how much noise and anger there is in the stadium towards the City players because Liverpool are obviously one of the teams who have lost out the most from City's cheating."

Listen to full chat below or on BBC Sounds here

Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, and Chelsea, are all interested in 27-year-old Barcelona and France defender Jules Kounde, with the Spanish club willing to listen to significant offers. (Sport - in Spanish), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip column

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Erling Haaland sparked injury concerns as he limped off in Norway's 2-1 Nations League defeat by Portugal.

The Manchester City striker beckoned to the bench to be substituted in the 67th minute of the Group A4 tie and was replaced by Jorgen Strand Larsen.

With seven goals so far this season, the club will await further news as they prepare for a trip to Liverpool on Sunday in the Premier League.

It will be their first game since they were found guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations. City have lodged an appeal.

Haaland and Norway suffered a third successive Nations League defeat on Sunday as Goncalo Ramos scored a late winner for Portugal, who booked their place in the last eight.

Sami Mokbel
Senior football correspondent

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The looming punishment certainly complicates Manchester City's plans in the transfer market.

"This isn't the players' failing, it is on the club," said one leading agent. "Joining Manchester City without knowing what the punishment would be represents an undeniable risk, so any new contracts would have to have indemnities."

It was acknowledged that writing eventualities into new registrations is very difficult, though Manchester City players do have release clauses in their deals should the club enter into administration.

Until a post-appeal verdict is made, making new signings will certainly become more complicated. However, it is likely the club will still be able to attract big players as they have the financial muscle to do so.

One potential method of persuading a player to join would be to offer them a contract on big money, with no pay decreases if the club are relegated and with a fixed-fee release clause if Manchester City don't return to the top flight within a set period.

However, attracting top players will be harder if the sanctions ensure relegation and include further points deductions which stretch over multiple seasons.

The club could make a wage package hard to resist for elite players, but it seems inconceivable that a footballer of that ilk would join with demotion a possibility, as there are likely to be other top options elsewhere.

The same logic can be applied to the retention of their current squad.

With all that said, particularly if relegation occurs, Manchester City will have to rebuild their squad to some extent, though the prospect of a transfer embargo would prevent them from making any signings at all.

Such a rebuild may include the promotion of the club's best academy players, who stand to benefit if the first-team squad disbands.

For example, when Chelsea were placed under a transfer embargo in 2019, the likes of Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham, Fikayo Tomori, Billy Gilmour and Callum Hudson-Odoi all emerged as senior players.

However, a number of clubs are already seeing if they can capitalise on the current uncertainty by luring away City's best academy talent.

Read the full article here

Daniel Austin
BBC Sport senior journalist

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How long will City's appeal take?

The commission was made up of three people, each with many years' experience in the legal field.

The appeal will now be heard in private by a new, three-person independent commission panel, each with a similar expert background in law.

One section of the Premier League regulations says that an appeal hearing should conclude within 12 weeks of it being heard, and a decision communicated within 30 days of that.

Twelve weeks from Thursday – when City say they lodged the appeal – would be 24 December.

But this timeframe can also be disapplied if deemed necessary, meaning it remains uncertain how long the process will actually take.

The relevant regulation was only added to the rule book this summer.

Previous precedent suggests that sanctions against City will only be imposed after a decision on the appeal, though this is not guaranteed.

There could therefore also be a second appeal later down the line, against any sanctions imposed on the club.

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What will City argue?

City will claim as part of their appeal that key sponsorship deals were funded by the Abu Dhabi government, rather than the club's owners.

Owners Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG) - a private investment company belonging to United Arab Emirates vice-president and deputy prime minister Sheikh Mansour - are said to have topped up the value of commercial deals as part of a "disguised funding scheme" to the scale of £830.69m.

This, it was argued, enabled the club to appear to comply with Premier League and Uefa financial rules.

Premier League rules allow state-owned bodies to sponsor clubs.

City's principal sponsor Etihad Airways has said it is considering legal action against the Premier League, claiming the release of the commission findings had "damaging implications… despite the airline not being named in the redacted published findings".

The UAE's state-owned national airline said it "categorically rejects any finding, conclusion or implication that suggests the airline has ever been involved in improper commercial arrangements".

Etihad is owned by sovereign wealth fund L'Imad which is chaired by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, the son of the UAE president.

Read more here

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England boss Thomas Tuchel says the news Manchester City have been found guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations has been a "big topic" of conversation in the Three Lions camp.

The news was broken by The Athletic on Friday last week and confirmed by a Premier League statement on Tuesday, just hours before England's win over Czech Republic - but the story has now further developed, with City lodging an appeal against the verdict.

During his news conference before Saturday's Nations League match against Croatia, Tuchel was asked whether the news is impacting the camp.

"I guess so," he said. "We had some time off between the matches and it is a big subject. Everyone speaks about it, so there is no other voice needed. I am glad to be not that voice. No-one needs my half knowledge on the topic.

"Of course, the players talk about it. City players talk about it. We talk with them but only briefly. They are ready to go tomorrow. But, of course, it's a big topic in the camp."

City defender Nico O'Reilly has returned to the club for treatment on an injury, but club-mates Elliot Anderson and Marc Guehi are likely to feature on Saturday, with the Tuchel saying the latter is "very likely to start".

Sami Mokbel
Senior football correspondent

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So much has been said about Manchester City since it was revealed they had been found guilty of the majority of the 115 Premier League charges levelled at them, but so far there has been little focus on what it means for their current squad.

Without definitive clarity on what sanctions the Premier League will impose, pending the appeal Manchester City have lodged, there is uncertainty over their ability to retain players, renew contracts and make transfers.

Put simply: will players want to join and will the current players want to stay?

The general train of thought is that any drop down the leagues will result in a mass exodus and that players will consider their futures at Etihad Stadium, at the very least.

The reaction from current members of the Manchester City squad varies depending on who you speak to. Sources close to the first team have told BBC Sport that there is certainly a significant level of concern as to how they will be affected.

For those players who decide they don't want to drop down the divisions, should it come to that, the process of leaving is unlikely to be straightforward.

Given how much their players are worth, in terms of wages and general value in the market, you would imagine the club are unlikely to accept being undercut.

BBC Sport also understands that the majority of the players do not have relegation clauses in their current contracts, which also plays into the club's hands.

It is also understood that the players' contracts are fully guaranteed, meaning they would not be required to take percentage pay cuts if the club loses its top-flight status, but maintaining one of the highest wage bills in the world will become harder without Premier League-level income.

Parachute money could ease those concerns, but there are no guarantees the club would be entitled to those payments if they are demoted.

However, it is unlikely Manchester City will roll over and let disillusioned players depart without suitable offers because, ultimately, they can ride the storm financially.

They are also big payers and other clubs may not be as willing to meet similar wage demands. One agent told BBC Sport: "Some players want medals, all players want money."

Any deals that include exit strategies, if the club fall out of the Premier League, would have to be negotiated as new contracts as well - but a number of agents, who spoke to BBC Sport, believe the players will be advised to wait for clarity on the punishments before even considering opening talks.

It is also important to note that Manchester City's potential challenges with player contracts come at the same time as Fifa's plans to introduce new rules that state every deal signed on 1 January 2027 or after must include a release clause.

Read the full article here