Imagine the PR gaff of having to retrospectively strip titles from a club. All the PL will do is wait for a season where City win the league by 20 points and strip them of 19.
Imagine the PR gaff of having to retrospectively strip titles from a club. All the PL will do is wait for a season where City win the league by 20 points and strip them of 19.
I don’t think you full understand the City case. They’ve been charged by the PL and it’s been sent to a independent commission to come up with the punishment as per the PL rules. That’s the stage we are in now, there’s an independent commission reviewing the evidence from both sides to ultimately come up with the punishment. The league won’t strip them of the titles, the independent commission will strip them if they see fit to do so.
Another note these charges only refer to seasons between 2009-10 and 2017-18, there could be another investigation for 2018-19 till now but that’s just jurno and social media talk right now.
While I agree it’ll be a PR nightmare for the league, to many people it’s the only way to hold up the ethical standard of the league. The league and commission almost certainly has upmost pressure from league owners (most notably probably LFC owners) and then fans around the world.
Personally don’t see a huge punishment for City like stripped titles. The high priced City lawyers will drag this out for a long time and negotiate the penalty down. No matter what the PL needs to rewrite FFP/sustainability rules, to make it easier for them to investigate but also ensure punishment is taken quicker, and also make it easier for “smaller” clubs to challenge the bigger ones if owners put up some collateral stake.
Punishment? Don’t they have to first investigate to establish guilt before the punishment is dished out?
Even as a city fan I just want to say I appreciate your sentiment in your last paragraph. Something needs to be done to FFP to make it easier for clubs to rise like city did, because FFP really does make it impossible for “smaller” clubs to challenge a title which means that there will never be even footing. Older and more established clubs who spent more in the past will always have the edge.
As for city specifically, I read the CAS judgements and they found nothing financially suspect, even when reviewing the time barred stuff. So I wouldn’t say the process is “deciding upon a punishment” at this point in time as much as it is deciding if a punishment is warranted. I doubt we’ll ever agree on that but I do appreciate you mentioning that things need to change to allow teams to replicate City’s rise in a “fair” way.
I agree with this… up to a point. And City and Chelsea have gone way past that point.
Impossible for smaller clubs to challenge? Leicester would like a word
I knew Leicester would be brought up here but let’s be honest that’s a pipe dream within a pipe dream that somehow came true.
Weren’t they also dinged by FFP at one point?
Nothing for city lawyers to drag out. This is not a court.
Any delay is 100% on the league.
Man City are fighting this now, whence why no panel has been set
I think if club gets charged and especially if they refuse to cooperate,they should be suspended until it’s solved. That way they’ll make em cooperate with pl, process would go faster and other clubs wouldn’t be so negatively affected,at least in that year of suspension, by wrongdoins of one club.
Everything you say makes perfect sense, but I still don’t believe city will ever get docked 10 points. I hope they do, it would be justice, but I’m not convinced we live in that world.
Liverpool would only get 1 EPL title retrospectively should Shitty be banished to the netherrealm no?
Was more speaking on FSG and their love for FFP and such. It’s widely known they’ve wanted FFP to be enforced
Great response. City and Chelsea will both get points deducted
Is there evidence to support that LFC ownership have been the most vocal in condemning or calling out Man City’s supposed financial impropriety? I am not aware of this.
No owners have spoken out and I don’t think any will. Was more speaking on FSG and their love for FFP and such. It’s widely known they’ve wanted FFP to be enforced
Is this independent commission known? It will be fun to see city charges dropped and all the members of this commission drive off in their Ferraris.
Man City are fighting the pl in court now over whether the pl can charge them
Only until this is resolved a panel can be formed or not
There’s a lot of sense in what you say. I’ll just add this:
They have rewritten the rules. Clubs now have to submit in full, quarterly (I think) and a final year end by May. The FA has until August to review/approve/charge. Any appeal etc to be wrapped up by Christmas. This prevents the delaying tactic. They also moved the burden of proof to the club more than the FA, and failing to cooperate is considered the same crime, with same punishment.
If we use Sheff Wednesday as a reference point, and Everton, then SW got 12 points reduced to 6 on appeal. City’s 6 ffps for direct investment look broadly like SW’s. Everton look less bad, and they have 10, and I suspect will get 5 on appeal. The Mancini breach is the worst, and will get more than 12 and I doubt will be reduced in appeal. It’s literally cash in brown envelopes bad. So, let’s say 6x6 and 20. That’s a 56 point deduction. Interestingly, that would require 94 points won to stay up, or put another way a very interesting season for everyone. Did someone mention PR? Nobody has been murdered and City will have their destiny in their own hands. That’s good for the product, good for the media, good for the ethics, and, I’d say, good for City.
They will also get big fines, and appeal on severity. They can’t argue against most of the charges for failing to cooperate.
On the question of stripping titles? I can’t see it. Other clubs have had point deductions and they didn’t apply retrospectively. There’s only the Juve precedent and that’s match fixing not ffp.
Someone elsewhere claimed that on being found guilty they could be banned from Europe. I’m not sure that is the case (it might be, I don’t know) but I’d expect UEFA to pressure the FA to do so. And again, no PR issues, really.
I said elsewhere, the biggest real consequence for City is if Pep walks, and/or players aren’t motivated to fight a relegation fight with a title winning performance.
Well there you have the problem mate