Senior figure and Premier League clubs hold Manchester City belief regarding 115 charges and major sanction | OneFootball

Manchester City would not be punished sufficiently if they received a points deduction in the event of a guilty verdict around their 115 charges, Premier League clubs believe.

The hearing into the club’s 115 charges for alleged breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules began on Monday, with Manchester City first charged back in February 2023 and referred to the now-formed independent commission.

The Premier League allege that Manchester City breached its financial rules between 2009 and 2018, while those within the Etihad Stadium have strongly denied all charged and state that their case is supported by a “comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence”.

As for the Premier League, the English top-flight claim that their four-time successive champions breached rules requiring the club to provide “accurate financial information that gives a true and fair view of the club’s financial position”.

Much has been speculated regarding the potential sanctions that could be handed to Manchester City, should they be found guilty of most, if not all, of their 115 charges, with punishments ranging from transfer bans to hefty points deductions.

Now, according to the information of The Telegraph’s Ben Rumsby, teams in the Premier League believe a points deduction – even one that relegated them to the Championship – would not be suitable if City are found guilty of most or all of the charges facing them.

One alternative proposed by a ‘senior figure in the game’, according to The Telegraph’s report would be for points deductions to be applied across multiple seasons to severely impact Manchester City’s ability to challenge for honours.

On the subject of the independent commission, with proceedings now underway, The Telegraph reports that they would have no power to relegate City to a particular division as it would have no jurisdiction over the likes of the English Football League or National League.

As such, the report explains that expelling Manchester City would, therefore, force the Etihad Stadium club to apply to enter the EFL, which would in turn be under no obligation to make them a member.

The current estimation is that the hearing in front of an independent commission in London will last up to 10 weeks, with a final verdict on the matter due in early 2025, while any appeal would only push back that date until the back-end of the ongoing season.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is already insisted on his own happiness that the process is now underway, following over a year of uncertainty regarding what could come next for the Premier League champions.

Speaking during a press conference earlier this season, Guardiola said of the hearing beginning on Monday 16 September, “I’m happy it’s starting on Monday. I know there will be more rumours, new specialists about the sentences.

“We’re going to see. I know what people are looking forward to, what they expect, I know, what I read for many, many years.”