Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola faced reporters on Friday during a regularly scheduled press conference. Premier League coaches typically field questions about injury updates and their opponents ahead of games. The Spaniard touched on these subjects as City is set to host Brentford on Saturday. Nevertheless, there was a fairly large elephant in the press room unrelated to the Bees on Friday — Man City’s 115 charges.
A hearing regarding Manchester City’s 115 financial charges is finally set to start on Monday. The club was officially charged 19 months ago but the complexity of the case has delayed the proceedings. Along with discussing his squad and facing Brentford with reporters, Guardiola claimed that he is “looking forward” to the outcome of the case.
“It starts soon and then finishes soon,” the coach said of the trial. “An independent panel will decide and I am looking forward to the decision.”
“We will accept the sentence. I know there will be more rumors and more about the [possible] sentences but we will see. I know what people are expecting as it’s what I’ve read for many years. Everyone is innocent until proven guilty.”
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Man City’s 115 charges: Complex case is likely to spill into 2025
Guardiola’s comments, however, should be taken with a grain of salt. Unlike what the coach claimed, the case is expected to drag on for some time. According to a legal expert, the actual hearing will take around 10 weeks. This is an exceptionally lengthy time for such a civil commercial trial.
Along with the hearing potentially extending to Thanksgiving, Manchester City will most likely not just “accept the sentence” if it is a negative outcome for them. Assuming they are handed a significant punishment, club officials are expected to appeal the ruling. If so, the case could then possibly drag on until early 2025.
The case is widely considered to be the sports trial of the century. After all, City is not just an average team fighting off mundane charges. The club, the most successful English side within the last decade, is facing a multitude of serious breaches. They have collected three Premier League titles during the specific timeframe when the alleged offenses occurred.
Premier League will be undermined if City gets a slap on the wrist
If found guilty of the charges, Manchester City faces varied punishments. This includes a heavy points deduction, fines, and even expulsion from the Premier League. Nevertheless, the latter scenario is currently highly doubtful.
Not only will City most likely avoid dropping down to the second-tiered Championship, but many fans and pundits believe the club will steer clear of any serious punishment. City previously avoided a Champions League ban for breaching financial rules back in 2020. They were initially barred from the tournament for two years after an official ruling. City, however, successfully appealed the decision and was immediately allowed to feature in the competition.
The general feeling amongst soccer fans is that authorities will fail once again in trying to severely punish Guardiola’s team. City’s ability to deflect charges would have made John Gotti proud. Because of the sheer amount of charges, a total acquittal would be disastrous for the Premier League.
Nevertheless, even a small punishment in the case would completely undermine the league as a whole. Everton and Nottingham Forest were handed points penalties for sole infractions. City, on the other hand, faces over 100 total charges.
The outcome of the upcoming trial will be anticipated by just about everyone involved in the sport. A potentially favorable outcome for City would almost certainly trigger an intense backlash from fans all over England and around the world.
Photo: PA Images
