An independent commission has found Manchester City guilty of breaking more than 100 of the Premier League’s financial rules, and their future in the top flight is in serious jeopardy.
The Independent Commission has accused Manchester City of creating ‘sham’ contracts for coaches and players and found that more than 85 per cent of sponsorship revenue between 2009 and 208 came from the club’s owners.
Manchester City insist they have irrefutable evidence to prove their innocence and have lodged an appeal to clear their name of any wrongdoing.
The club are fighting for their future, but one former Leeds United manager has insisted everyone in the Premier League knew something was wrong with Manchester City.
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Jesse Marsch launches astonishingly brutal attack on Man City
The former Leeds boss believes Manchester City should face the severest of sanctions for their financial fraud and has stressed that they deserve to suffer relegation from the Premier League.
He insisted that when he was at Leeds, Manchester City’s spending made it clear something was wrong with the club and how they were conducting business.
Marsch does not believe Manchester City paid only £52m for Erling Haaland and insisted he knew something was definitely amiss at the Etihad.
“I think Man City should be punished severely”, Marsch told The Guardian.
“I think they should have to go down, and, by the way, everyone knew about it. Everyone knew.
“That summer [2022], us and Man City were the only teams that said we made money. For us, we did make money, because we sold Raphinha; we sold Kalvin Phillips [to City]. We had a lot left over from what we bought.
“At the time, we weren’t in a position financially to not save. Our ownership didn’t have deep pockets. Whereas when Man City says this, I was literally like, ‘Are you kidding me? Is this some kind of joke?’
“When they said they got Erling Haaland for £52m, it’s like: ‘Yeah, OK, sure!’ So I knew there were inconsistencies, but what can you do? You just put your arms in the air and go, ‘This is football’.”
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Should Leeds vote to expel Manchester City?
If an independent commission recommends expelling Manchester City from the Premier League, Leeds should vote in favour.
That should not be because Leeds could benefit from their removal, or because supporters might enjoy seeing one of the biggest clubs in English football brought down. It should come down to one thing: whether the Premier League’s rules actually mean something.
Leeds, like every other club, are expected to operate within those rules. If an independent process concludes that Manchester City committed breaches serious enough to warrant the ultimate sporting punishment, Leeds should respect that verdict.
There is obviously a huge difference between a points deduction and expulsion. Removing City would have enormous sporting and commercial consequences for the Premier League, so the bar must be extremely high.
But if that bar is reached, Leeds should not be intimidated by Manchester City’s size or influence.
The club should vote for what it believes is right for the competition’s integrity, even if it is not necessarily in Leeds’ own interests.
