Manchester City are facing a number of charges by the Premier League, but it remains unknown whether or not the club will be found guilty.
For many years, Manchester City have been the strongest club in the Premier League, as displayed by their eight titles since 2011/12.
However, this extraordinary achievement has been marred in recent years by an ongoing legal dispute involving the club and the Premier League.
City were charged with allegedly breaching financial regulations from 2009 to 2018, but they refuse to accept any admission of wrongdoing, despite now facing 130 charges.
Manchester City will not face punishment any time soon
Years have passed since Man City originally faced what was then a set of 115 FFP charges brought forward by the Premier League and there remains no knowing when the saga will end.
According to former Liverpool chief Christian Purslow, this will continue to be the case for some time before a verdict is finally given.
He told The Football Boardroom: “This first panel has shown that predicting timetables is a fool’s errand.
“In the scenario that there are any guilty findings, and in that scenario, Manchester City choose perfectly reasonably to appeal under Premier League appeal rules that will move forward, and that could be another three, six, nine, or 12 months at least.
“Crucially, at the same moment they are reviewing the decision, even in the scenario of any guilty findings, then the question of sanctioning would most likely be pushed down the road.”
Purslo added that any potential punishment or settlement will not arrive easily. “I don’t think these matters get resolved, by the way that the APT [Associated Party Transaction] case did, in an out-of-court settlement between the Premier League and Manchester City,” he continued.
“I want to be really clear on that. I think it would be a terrible mistake for the Premier League to be tempted … both sides think, ‘You know what, let’s just reach an agreement for a reasonable sanction, a reasonable settlement, and move on’.
“I think that would be a terrible mistake. It would be impossible to keep everybody happy. The smart decision is, if I’m the chairman of the Premier League, let’s leave it to the lawyers. Let’s leave it to the process, which everybody signed up to.
“My point is a simple one. When this is left to the judges, however frustrating it is that it takes so long, it will be in the land of precedent.
“The precedent is sporting sanction. The sporting sanction is likely to be major points deductions, which ultimately could translate into relegation.”
Pep Guardiola will not be focused on off-the-pitch matters
City do not need any distractions right now and so Pep Guardiola and his players will be paying no attention to all matters unrelated to the club’s footballing operation.
The Premier League title is still very much on the cards and there are another three pieces of silverware on offer. That must be City’s main focus as the season moves closer towards its climax.
