Manchester United banter 5

30 Sep 2026 16:16:42
What I don't understand is how City executives, owners and past executives can claim "there's a story still to come out". If they had a valid defense based on convincing contradictory evidence, why on earth did they not bring it to the attention of the independent panel? Surely that would have been the way to do it.

It makes no sense at all. At best it smacks of the same withholding of information and obstruction of which they have been accused.

30 Sep 2026 17:45:53
Don't be surprised if they haven't dug up something on one or more of the independent panel. They probably aim to claim bias and therefore have the case thrown out.

30 Sep 2026 20:15:38
It's just all gaslighting and sportswashing like it has been throughout. It's working in their fans (or the vast majority it seems). I think if United or Liverpool found out their owners had cheated like this there would be mass protests and hounding them out of the club, city fans seem to be happy that they cheated as they got to win things.

50 years, F all.

30 Sep 2026 21:17:46
I like to visit other sites every now and again just for an opinion or two out of curiosity do you think your current CEO should be sacked? If you go over his job titles for City for the 9 years he was there it's not great reading.

30 Sep 2026 21:47:53
Burnham chiming in, etihad airways threatening to sue the EPL. looks like the city fight back has begun, the Premier League are going to need balls and fortitude to see this through because no doubt this is only the beginning. This could get very messy as city will go for anyone to try and get this cleared.

30 Sep 2026 23:02:52
Etihad can't sue the Premier League, and the fact City have used this to try and undermine everything means they are running scared and accepting they are in trouble. There is no fight back, they are screwed.

Kloppers,

It does seem like he wasn't involved in any of the investigation and his name has been kept out of it, but I would question his ability to be in his current role if in those roles at City he didn't notice what was going on! Wonder if he's looking at Carrick and wondering why he's only got one contract.

01 Oct 2026 00:04:34
By the time Berrada became COO of City the cheating had already been going on for 7 or more years. Even if he had suspicions, I'm not sure that he would have had any actual knowledge and certainly no influence on what was going on before that. I also think that the owners have clearly made the inflow of money a difficult process to follow, keeping the vast majority of employees in the dark and giving them not only plausible deniability, but preventing any capacity for them to become whistleblowers. They might also be restrained by NDAs.

Question: Who are the redacted individuals?

30 Sep 2026 14:16:11
'Man City have been accused of putting in over 1.2 billion illegally but look what that has been spent on and the regeneration of the stadium, facilities and surrounding area. Meanwhile another club is 1.2bn in debt and still buying players they can't afford' just one comment I read today online.

There u have it, city aren't cheaters and it's in fact us that should be punished for being bought over and systematically asset stripped by the Glazers. You couldn't make it up.

30 Sep 2026 15:48:03
They broke the rules, but the rules are flawed. i'm not excusing what they did and they need to be punished, but the rules protect the bigger teams, just look at Newcastle and Villa having to sell their best players, how dare they try and compete.

As for United, it is obscene that we are a billion in debt, where is the rule that stops that happening?

30 Sep 2026 16:04:50
How the Glazers bought United should have been illegal. It wasn't.

I feel like the EPL rules are a flawed attempt to address a complicated problem. The reality is that the traditional big clubs, to varying degrees, got there by spending more than other clubs. Just look at how Jack Walker's injection of cash got Blackburn a title in the 90s. Money is essential for success.

However, the way economics of football have changed during the EPL era had to be addressed. The EPL saw how Russian billions propelled Chelsea in the 00s, and City's unlimited cash supply risked any semblance of competition.

The underlying fact is that City knew the rules. They went to incredibly lengths to hide their actions because they knew that they were breaking the rules. I suspect that the EPL assumed that City would admit to this, and accept a relatively mild punishment. When City didn't, they found themselves in a position where they had to build a compelling case that proved the extent of City's breaches. The problem is that these breaches are so flagrant and extreme that the EPL will have to levy punishments that destroy City as a club. I honestly don't think this is in either party's interests, but it's the route City have gone down.

Unfortunately, for us, the Glazers haven't broken any rules. They will continue to run the club into the ground with debt until they, inevitably sell it for billions.

30 Sep 2026 17:33:47
The rules are all agreed by the 20 clubs in the league and they're there to ensure sustainability as much as prosperity. This is why club owners can't pump unlimited amounts of money in without the club being able to support that level of spend on an ongoing basis.

Otherwise what's to stop them doing that and then dumping the whole thing and leaving the club in severe financial distress?

30 Sep 2026 18:03:07
Great Post Danny.

30 Sep 2026 20:19:12
Good one Danny. City knew what they were doing. Whether the rules are flawed or not they bought a club in a league that has those rules and then ignored them in order to gain a sporting advantage. If everyone else has been playing to the same rules city would never have won as much or got to where they are today.

Whether you agree with rules or not you have to play by them. It's like a goalkeeper saying he doesn't agree with the back pass law so just picks the ball up every time he defender passes it back, he would still be punished. Rules are rules, don't play by them and you'll be punished. They are screwed beyond belief.

02 Oct 2026 16:58:45
Apparently the worst is yet to come. they didn't magically stop doing this in 2018. The timescale has to be set between certain dates. As soon as this is all over, the next set of charges will come about.

The haaland transfer was very fishy for a start. 51 million when others bid over double, I'm sure I read something the other day saying it was 250 million deal and that was from someone who was at Dortmund at the time.

29 Sep 2026 22:15:40
Just seen on Sky Sports News the video by the City CEO refuting all charges. It strikes me that the City hierarchy are not total fools. Obviously if guilty they are likely to try to downplay their offences, but to totally refute all charges begs the question.

What if they are actually not guilty of the most serious charge from which all others (as they claim) stem.

29 Sep 2026 22:46:19
If any new documents or evidence appear now after all this time, then it's authenticity should be seriously questioned. My guess is that city will try and call the panel biased and want this taken out to a normal court.

This is what they did when they took the APT thing to the high court. If they can prove the rules are anti competition etc then the rest is a moot point.

29 Sep 2026 23:00:34
They've already said that they'll try to take it to the High Court if the appeal fails. That has always been the City strategy, to drag the process out for as long as possible. Presumably, they'll also be pushing to revive the Super League idea while they appeal.

29 Sep 2026 23:07:33
They come across arrogant and above the law. They are used to getting what they want. I'm not sure they will this time.

30 Sep 2026 09:42:21
If this did happen and all charged were dropped, I'd hope all the clubs come together and refuse to do business with them.

30 Sep 2026 09:44:45
Salford, this was something I was considering yesterday while watching all the fallout from the announcement.

If City somehow manage to pull a rabbit out of the hat and are ultimately cleared of everything, I think the Premier League's reputation would be left in serious trouble. It would inevitably raise questions about the organisation's credibility and, more importantly, its ability to administer a fair and credible competition.

I can't imagine the other 19 Premier League clubs, or the numerous clubs who have competed against City during this period, being particularly satisfied if City were found to have done nothing wrong, given the volume of information that has emerged throughout the process and presumably the considerable amount of evidence that the public haven't seen. The Premier League simply have to win the case.

On the flip side, City's categorical denials throughout the entire process raise questions of their own. If they ultimately lose their appeal and are found to have breached the regulations they are accused of breaking, then surely the issue isn't simply about the breaches themselves. Their continued insistence that they have done nothing wrong would inevitably become part of the wider discussion around the case and this needs to be considered when sanctions are given out.

30 Sep 2026 09:55:48
In my experience of [V.I.P.] Arabs, constant denial and having the view that he who shouts loudest and has the most money / seniority owns the truth.
As said, "in my experience". Think of that what you will.

30 Sep 2026 12:06:06
Their defense seems to be that the rules weren't fair, so we didn't play by the rules. In no way is this a legitimate defense of the charges. Throw the book at them, and the punishment should be harsher given their lack of transparency and refusal to accept that they broke the rules.

30 Sep 2026 13:04:39
Which entity runs the Premier League?
The Premier League?
Manchester City?
One seems to think they run it and the other needs to show they run it.

30 Sep 2026 13:16:34
Money runs the Premier League.

Man City think they have enough money to drag things out until they become so messy that they destabilise the entire league.

We see all the potential issues the verdict can create: clubs awarded trophies, clubs entitled to compensation, clubs that might feel they should never have been relegated. Yet, City are still acting like the case doesn't exist: spending hundreds of millions on new players, paying massive wages, signing new sponsorship deals.

My only explanation is that they are operating under the assumption that they can keep the case unresolved for long enough to plot their escape.

30 Sep 2026 20:17:49
If they continue to deny the charges and lose an appeal, then the punishment should be harsher.

Just like a criminal court where if you plead not guilty and lose your case.

29 Sep 2026 21:36:48
My biggest take from this whole city thing is, are the owners fit and proper persons? I'm not sure lying and covering it up are. So should they be forced to sell? If so, how do we report Jimmy and the Glazers? ?.

30 Sep 2026 00:10:17
Don't think you can accuse the Glazers of pumping their own money into the Club do you?!!

29 Sep 2026 19:46:12
On the BBC site, just read the following, released by Premier League:

Premier League confirm Man City guilty of all charges related to breaches of financial rules.

Man City arranged "sham contracts" with number of commercial partners as part of scheme to disguise secret funding over more than £830m.

Statement says City were guilty of majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate - but exact figure not given.

"7, 000 pages of transcripts"
In explaining the length of time it had taken to provide the parties with a decision, the independent commission wrote: "It has taken us much longer than we would have wished, and much longer than we had anticipated would be the case when the hearing concluded, to produce our decision. That is regrettable."

The commission added there were 7, 000 pages of transcripts from witness interviews to go through, alongside other documents, which in total amounted to "tens of thousands of pages".

Clearly City are taking things seriously,
Manchester City have just posted on X.

"Vote for your September Goal of the Month".

Saw yesterday that the solicitor of Rui Pinto, the guy who hacked and subsequently posted the information on Football Leaks, is living under Police protection following the receipt of death threats.

He also was prosecuted in Sept 2023 and received a 4 year suspended prison sentence!

Anyway, the solicitor said that he had been given (by Pinto) 2 hard drives full of additional information on this.

I think we are only seeing the beginning of things now. Just like Pandora's Box, it has been opened and there is a lot more to come out.

Put a shipping order in for popcorn, sit back and watch!

29 Sep 2026 21:05:34
Oh, it also seems City knew the verdict in the summer, so they rushed out to the shops and spent another £450m on players.

Get extra supplies in before the storm breaks!

29 Sep 2026 22:01:48
They did end up selling £300m as well, and loaning out another with a £50m + 10m add-on obligation. Counting that, there net spending was less than ours.

01 Oct 2026 09:50:37
The big question, who did you vote for September goal of the month?

29 Sep 2026 16:28:40
Mazraoui and Dorgu injured? How's Bruno? What about Kobbie? How depleted will our squad be for the Spurs game?

29 Sep 2026 21:11:36
Enough for it to be an excuse for Carrick ?.

29 Sep 2026 21:33:14
Maz and dorgu wouldn't start, brunos fine and mainoos fine he just don't like the German ?.

29 Sep 2026 15:11:10
I think the punishment should and will be fairly swift. Implement the punishment then giving City as long as they want to appeal the punsihment.
They might have more urgency in complying then.
I remember ED002 saying that 13/14 of the charges were very serious.

They have obviously been found guily of those.
Something like 80 point deduction very big fine and a transfer ban inward for a few years.
Then other clubs can begin their litigation and claim.

29 Sep 2026 16:29:52
Expel them from the leagues and be done with it.

29 Sep 2026 21:17:13
I don't think expulsion and a swift return is the outcome here.
As damaging as it might be to the EPL short term, a sustained period of their inability to reenter the EPL is required.

Is that a continued expulsion for a period of time (not sure that will stand up), or is a repeated points deduction required each season for 'x' number of seasons? Again not sure how sustainable that is, but it seems a fair outcome as it will serve as a constant reminder to everyone that if you systematically try to circumvent the rules (irrespective of your take of them), you will be punished accordingly.

I totally get the argument of the EPL being weaker without city in the league, so was every sporting league/circuit/etc when a cheating scandal arises.

The EPL will recover, it might just take a bit of time, time that is better served without one cheating party present.

29 Sep 2026 07:39:02
{Ed's Note - OptimumShots has posted a new article entitled, What a Fair Punishment for Manchester City Should Look Like

29 Sep 2026 10:04:29
Interesting take, but none of that is going to happen. Chelsea had 74 breaches and were fined, City's punishment may be more severe but it will be 1 and done, and I lack confidence it will be the punishment they deserve.

The behaviour of their owners has been dreadful and they have the money and muscle to keep this going I just hope thenaPremier League has big balls.

29 Sep 2026 11:08:27
They're restricted to using standard size balls.

29 Sep 2026 13:57:30
Well, if they don't get punished appropriately, what stops Newcastle for example from doing the same thing? Or any other club?

29 Sep 2026 14:20:04
Look, I think everybody outside the city fans will think the punishment will be light. My opinion is that if they are proven to have cheated over eight seasons, they must serve the punishment for eight seasons. A big fine and a large point deduction could see them in a position to be fully recovered in two seasons, so from my perspective, I would like to see them live the longevity in purgatory they imposed on the victim clubs, ourselves included. By imposing a recurring point penalty of 90 points (perhaps reducing by 5 points a season) for the next eight seasons they start in the EPL, they would face the consequences; if you cheat for eight years, you should not be home free in two—you should pay the same penalty for every year you cheated.

It simply will not happen like that. Unless a compensation package can be agreed upon with all clubs, I can see them in litigation for years to come. It really is one hell of a mess. I think ed001 says it below things could get really messy and everything they have done is worthless the whole epl from the 1st date till now had been tarnished. All their success post the 2018 guilty season was built on the foundation of years of cheating so worthless.
I pretty sure this will be a case of the punishment not being in line with the offence and in line with the victims expectations.
And in the case the victims are the rest of the worlds footballing community. The world is watching they need to be strong here.

29 Sep 2026 15:09:22
I think 80 point reduction or more to guarantee 2 years of immediate pain is appropriate.

Then agreeing to 6 more years of 40 point reduction. Per year in epl, which basically guarantees they will finish lower half or relegation zone. This is an interesting thought Ken, and could used tk appease the clubs who will want to sue.

I don't see how financial compensation could possibly be levied, man United could make a case for £200m plus easily, and I'm sure others fighting for ucl spots could do the same. Perhaps an ongoing 8 year penalty is the appropriate payback to the other epl teams?

29 Sep 2026 00:54:03
Wonder how many more years it will be now for all the City appeals to be heard. Justice whichever it way it falls has to prevail but it hugely taints all competition until then.

As a player how must it be knowing that you are fighting to win a competition and may be denied by a team who may have cheated. You lose a competition to them only later possibly to be told actually you won it. The spontaneous joy and pleasure is taken away from you. Bad enough for us spectators but worse for the players as they only have a short window of their working lives to win something.

If a significant amount of the charges are found to be true they should throw the book at City.

They say power corrupts but so does money and in some countries corruption is viewed as a way of life. It's why I never wanted owners who might come from such societies unless their were safeguards which were really strong.

Even though there will be a sense of gloating about the noisy neighbours it must be awful for the City fans to know that all their success is meaningless if the charges are proved. I don't like them but they don't deserve that. They followed their team to the lower reaches of the leagues and were loyal.

Meantime the City owners are doubling down on their position and apparently saying this will run for ages.

I hope that the Liverpool supporters really show their displeasure and that all clubs do whenever City play. Regardless of their guilt or innocence the silence spoils the league.

One last thing if City were to be relegated and they lost their top stars especially to
teams abroad it would damage English football even more.

The one positive that might just come out of this is that somehow the teams and football authorities agree to cap the ridiculous amounts paid here and abroad as transfer fees. It's not sustenance. Makes it almost impossible for small teams to win leagues and encourages the larger clubs to act arrogantly with no consideration for the lifeblood of the game which is the football pyramid.

29 Sep 2026 09:13:08
Salford i do have a lot of empathy for the long standing city fans. They have been let down and cheated on just as badly as the other clubs on an emtional front.
I have read the any punishments can be administered before or during an appeal and them removed if an appeal is successful so they can act now which will then put a time frame on any appeal decision.

The verdict was leaked so that in itself is another legal minefield.
I really think it should be as severe as a 90 point deduction for the next 10 times they compete in the epl effectively ensuring any time they get promoted they will suffer relegation the following season. All titles removed. A ten year transfer ban on incoming players.

Pay all epl competitors during their time 30m each pay a 100m fine to the league. This will put them out of the competitve arena for 20 plus years.
The carnage that would ensue if that sort of pu ishment was administered. Fines of over 1 billion no hope for 20 plus years, players wanting out asap, and having to develop your own players - no new signings for 10 seasons.

I think they would find themselves in division 3 at best in 10 years time.
I don't expect they will be anything as severe as that or as long lasting but that would be my hope.
Can it go to a members vote to expel then from the epl either for a period or permenantly?

29 Sep 2026 09:48:17
Just expel them from the leagues and be done with it. Move on, simples.

29 Sep 2026 11:39:46
Yep agree, big points deduction soon along with transfer ingoing transfer bans, huge fine. Then City can take as long as they want to appeal.

29 Sep 2026 14:10:08
The Premier League now has a very tricky situation to navigate. Whatever sanction is ultimately imposed on City has to take into account not only the seriousness of the alleged breaches, but also the clubs that have competed against them during this period and the wider integrity of the competition.

A hefty fine alone, IMO, wouldn't be satisfactory. Given City's financial resources, I would expect that to be the outcome they would be most comfortable with if they had any say in the matter. A financial penalty can be absorbed, it doesn't necessarily address the competitive advantage that may have been gained or provide any meaningful sense of accountability.

There's also the wider issue of what happens if City are relegated or face points deductions. Any punishment inevitably has consequences for the leagues they could potentially be sent into, so the Premier League has to consider the knock on effects as well.

Personally, what I would like to see is the ownership situation addressed. If the evidence ultimately establishes deliberate rule breaking to gain a competitive advantage, then I think the owners should be removed from the club, or at the very least suspension while the final verdict and outcome are determined.

The Premier League cannot realistically have a situation where owners who are found to have deliberately broken its rules to gain an advantage over other clubs simply carry on as normal after the punishment is handed down.

Whatever the final sanction is, it needs to be about more than just putting a number on a fine. It needs to restore confidence that the same rules apply to every club, regardless of how wealthy or powerful its owners are.

30 Sep 2026 00:37:35
I can't see them doing anything that would destroy the club for a lengthy period (ie banning them from 'the leagues' is being mentioned a lot). Nor an immediate relegation as that would throw the fixture list into chaos lol. A huge fine, and because that won't hurt them, a huge points deduction that will certainly prevent them qualifying for Europe and have them trying to remain in the division and probably failing.

Most of the squad vowing to play for free for a season in the championship then immediate promotion. The end.

28 Sep 2026 20:12:47
Just a question for the editors, and anyone else that may know a bit more about it.

Obviously it is between 2009 and 2018 that City have been alleged and now proven to have been cheating with how they have financed their spending. But that spending doesn't only affect the seasons in which they spent that money. For example Kevin de Bruyne was signed in 2016, but played for City for 10 years until 2025.

As a result, he played a major part in the City team that won league titles in 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024. The same can be said for Raheem Sterling, John Stones, Kyle Walker, Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva, and Ederson.

What right do other Premier League clubs have to ask the Premier League to look at league titles won since 2018 on the basis that it was their spending whilst they were cheating that allowed them to build that squad and achieve that sustained success later down the line?

Obviously it would be difficult to make any judgement, but for my money it is incredibly clear that those titles are equally as tarnished as any they won during the 2009-2018 period.

{Ed001's Note - it would be incredibly difficult, but there is certainly a few considering that.}

29 Sep 2026 09:59:24
I'm finding it difficult to believe the epl has not prepared any punishments for City; they have had the best part of 2.5 years to decide upon appropriate action for a guilty conclusion to the charges they accused city of.

For me they have to throw the book at them, severe action is a must. Expelled from the league, titles stripped, huge huge fine and basically leaving city to face many individual compensation claims.