City and Financial Doping | Charged by PL with numerous FFP breaches | Hearing begins 16th September 2024

Meanwhile, in the Takeover thread, folks are willing a Qatari takeover.

FFS, again.

City aren’t being charged with having wealthy ME owners, or being funded by oil money.

They’re being charged with cheating and financial doping and corruption.

The two are very different.

Utd don’t need financial doping.
 
I won’t fuss too much about todays defeat. I’ll laugh and laugh when the PL drops the hammer on them. Wonder if they’ll think it’s all worth it then?
I love your optimism. Unfortunately I feel the FA would be more inclined to try and bury it under the sand to save face. I can't see a scenario where nobody officially wins two of the biggest English competitions. At worst they'll get a little asterisk next to their title, which city fans would use to show how everyone is against them. Winning corruptly, in their minds, would be proof that they've overcome odds that are stacked against them.

I hope I'm wrong. There's no magic in a league where dreams and integrity have been replaced by money and corruption.
 
It’s weird how little it’s mentioned.
It would be the same with any other case that had charges pending. If they’re found guilty and punished it will get the coverage it rightly deserves, but at this point they’re going to play it safe legally and say nothing.
 
Scenes when City are found guilty and we have to hastily organise a parade for our cup double.
 
Scenes when City are found guilty and we have to hastily organise a parade for our cup double.

Love the sentiment but they are being investigated for 2012 - 2021 only. I don't think they are cooking the books anymore as they probably no longer need to. It was those early years when they had to play catch up. That's 6 league titles though that shouldn't count if they are guilty.
 
Love the sentiment but they are being investigated for 2012 - 2021 only. I don't think they are cooking the books anymore as they probably no longer need to. It was those early years when they had to play catch up. That's 6 league titles though that shouldn't count if they are guilty.
Yeah i'm sure they've been absolutely clean good boys since 2021.
You could probably find enough around the Haaland deal alone. :lol:
 
Yeah i'm sure they've been absolutely clean good boys since 2021.
You could probably find enough around the Haaland deal alone. :lol:

Quite possibly and I hope you're right.

The longer this drags on for the weaker the PL look. It's exactly why they are stalling.
 
Love the sentiment but they are being investigated for 2012 - 2021 only. I don't think they are cooking the books anymore as they probably no longer need to. It was those early years when they had to play catch up. That's 6 league titles though that shouldn't count if they are guilty.

Good point. Was just trying to cheer myself up :lol:

Though I do think in the event they are found guilty, serious questions.over all their success need to be asked as even if they might not be cheating, they would have had to cheat to get to this point, so ultimately it would all be tainted.
 
Good point. Was just trying to cheer myself up :lol:

Though I do think in the event they are found guilty, serious questions.over all their success need to be asked as even if they might not be cheating, they would have had to cheat to get to this point, so ultimately it would all be tainted.

I don't think the PL have handled it well at all. They should have said this needs sorting before the end of the season back in December. They just look weak the longer it goes which is exactly what City want.

It would be like world cycling outing Lance Armstrong as a cheat but allowing him to carry on competing whilst they waited for his appeal.

Why can't City just release the books and squash this overnight if they are truly innocent? It makes no sense.

They are stalling for time so their lawyers can come up with some loopholes again. Blatantly obvious.
 
People can do all the mental gymnastics they want but the reality is they do not get pep without financial doping and we all know he is making more out of it than his official contract salary and without him they would not achieved a quarter of what they have under him
 
I don't think the PL have handled it well at all. They should have said this needs sorting before the end of the season back in December. They just look weak the longer it goes which is exactly what City want.

It would be like world cycling outing Lance Armstrong as a cheat but allowing him to carry on competing whilst they waited for his appeal.

Why can't City just release the books and squash this overnight if they are truly innocent? It makes no sense.

They are stalling for time so their lawyers can come up with some loopholes again. Blatantly obvious.

The Premier League is the biggest obstacle in this by far. They are not taking on just a football club, not even a business but a country and a country willing to do what it takes to get it's way.

All we can do is hope the Premier League have learned from UEFAs case, which was successful let's not forget and unlike UEFA, the PL don't have CAS to contend with.

City will employ every tactic in the book, I wouldn't be surprised if they even end up trying to intimidate people if the walls start closing in on them. I've said all along they operate like organised gangs so nothing is beyond them.
 
I don't think the PL have handled it well at all. They should have said this needs sorting before the end of the season back in December. They just look weak the longer it goes which is exactly what City want.

It would be like world cycling outing Lance Armstrong as a cheat but allowing him to carry on competing whilst they waited for his appeal.

Why can't City just release the books and squash this overnight if they are truly innocent? It makes no sense.

They are stalling for time so their lawyers can come up with some loopholes again. Blatantly obvious.
Their first defence wasn’t even denial, it was “the judge is an arsenal fan, he’s going to have it in for us!”
 
People can do all the mental gymnastics they want but the reality is they do not get pep without financial doping and we all know he is making more out of it than his official contract salary and without him they would not achieved a quarter of what they have under him

The biggest component in their success is the ridiculously good squad.
 
Days like today make it all seem much less likely that they’ll ever face punishment. Too much success means no going back.
 
Scenes when City are found guilty and we have to hastily organise a parade for our cup double.

Forget the cup double, I want their league success to be stipulated as "n/a".
 
It's a little different though isn't it?

Citeh, never in a million years would ever be this dominant without their sugar daddy. Their owner has to invent fake companies to sponsor them so they can plow their team with tonnes of dodgy cash. Then lies about it.

But United, in spite of our horrible owners, are still able to spend OUR OWN cash that we generate. All we need is an owner that doesn't take money out of the club, clear our debt and improve our stadium/facilities. That's it. We don't need to be artificially inflated.

I understand all that to be honest mate, and (unlike a lot of the idiots on here) I’m not looking for an argument.

Was just highlighting the optics
 
I'm inclined to agree. Best case, a transfer ban for 1 window.

No chance. The PL would look ridiculous.

If they wanted to ignore it they could have done. Up until 6 months ago, most assumed they had.

Now that this many charges have been filed, I don't see how the current ownership can be allowed to continue.
 
Considering the sheer magnitude and chronological length of the charges, letting them off lightly would signal to the world that the PL has succumbed entirely to corruption and cheating. I don't think their titles will be revoked because that's so messy, but I do suspect they'll face real punishment. Points deductions and a lengthy transfer ban at a minimum, anything less would have made the crime worth it and encourage others to do the same. Relegation would be justified but I'm not convinced the FA will go that far. At the end of the day, City will have come out ahead even if it costs them a season or two, but I have faith that they will face meaningful punishment in the end.
 
FFS, again.

City aren’t being charged with having wealthy ME owners, or being funded by oil money.

They’re being charged with cheating and financial doping and corruption.

The two are very different.

Utd don’t need financial doping.

Don't bother mate. That dude knows exactly what he is doing.
 
Hate them so much.

Hate the media fawning over them so much and they ignore any wrongdoings. If Bruno did what Haaland/Silva did today, he would have gotten crucified after the game.
 
They should have been suspended from all competitions while the investigation is ongoing.
Then what happens if they’re found innocent? They’ve had their season(s) ended for nothing and all their players were twiddling their thumbs for a couple of years?
 
Arsenal, United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Villa, Spurs, all should have reaped rewards for squads built within the rules of the game. All of them have deficiencies and problems, but they have, at different times, overcome those to produce great seasons. Battling to finals and having outstanding league campaigns.

All of that work is extinguished by a serial cheat squad that should never have been allowed to come together, and continues to play outside the rules.

It’s sad, and this is the Premier Leagues last chance to salvage the integrity of the game. City are well on their way to ruining it and I hate them for it. They need to act.
 
Considering the sheer magnitude and chronological length of the charges, letting them off lightly would signal to the world that the PL has succumbed entirely to corruption and cheating. I don't think their titles will be revoked because that's so messy, but I do suspect they'll face real punishment. Points deductions and a lengthy transfer ban at a minimum, anything less would have made the crime worth it and encourage others to do the same. Relegation would be justified but I'm not convinced the FA will go that far. At the end of the day, City will have come out ahead even if it costs them a season or two, but I have faith that they will face meaningful punishment in the end.

Titles have to be revoked.

A season in the championship and then back to business makes it well worth it.

Titles absolutely must be revoked coupled with a relegation.
 
Expecting them to get a fine and transfer ban, and maybe a small points deduction.
Punishments that won't really hurt them because they'll still have all the success they've built from cheating
 
For BBC and ITV to manage to not even mention it or their owners while journeying through their rise to success is just incredible cowardice. All in the pockets of Mansour. It's a propaganda machine that only works with a media this malleable. All the pundits, simon stone, you name them - all complicit cowards
100% true. Disgusting.
 
Expecting them to get a fine and transfer ban, and maybe a small points deduction.
Punishments that won't really hurt them because they'll still have all the success they've built from cheating

Yeah may as well do feck all
 
Best thing about this non sequitur is that its supposed to sound intelligent and really make you think but it's the wrong decade! Horse had bolted the stable by that point. 0/10 for WUMing
Depends. Would you apply your principle to 1940’s Germany?


The issue is that there’s a growing cartel of American-owned or influenced clubs whose primary motivator is profit. They are using their strength in numbers to limit the amount more benevolent owners can invest into their clubs, thus reducing their own costs to increase margins.

No amount of logical reasoning nor dialogue can alter their primary motivation.


Even then, there’s supposed to be checks and balances on democracies to avoid situations of the minority being oppressed by the majority. Obviously at the state level you have constitutions which set out the fundamental rights of citizens and the limitations on government power (albeit the UK is one of the very few democracies that doesn’t have one).

In this instance, I would argue that the freedom to invest (within reason) in your own football club to make it more competitive should be a fundamental right.
Was this particular Principle posting nonsense?
 
I do believe they will get found guilty and punished. A lot of what they claim is too extreme to make sense. Generating more money than Real Madrid and yourselves despite an inherently smaller fan base. Although for me, what was most nauseating was the covid year where Man City reported a profit and increased revenues. I always found this unintentionally hilarious given like all other clubs, they lost matchday revenue for an entire season. Every other club in the world reported losses and less revenues but Man City recorded a profit and increased revenue - this is utterly outrageous and even comical.

People go on about the 'Man City lawyers' but does the PL have morons working for them? For example prosecutors of the state earn inherently less than corporate lawyers, but they are certainly just as capable. I think it goes without saying there is clear wrongoding, and even active cheating regarding their accounts, the PL having initiated these charges would not have done so without strong evidence. The PL also needs to flex its muscle to fight of the ESL, if it shows weakness then its vulnerable to cracking. Man City will get pinged, its just a matter of what punishment they receive.


Manchester City buck Covid-19 impact as club returns to profit (thenationalnews.com)
 
The reason it has taken all these years for the charges to be made is because the FA is totally corrupt. They would not have acted if not for the other clubs pushing them.
The only solution is relegation to League 2.

The Qatar takeover IF it happens does not mean United will spend without limit.
We will be governed by the same rules and regulations that got City into trouble.

City in simple terms overstated their income and understated their expenses so they could buy all these players they have.

We have far more revenue streams than City and have not cooked the books for expenses.

Expect the action to begin after the CL Final.
 
Titles have to be revoked.

A season in the championship and then back to business makes it well worth it.

Titles absolutely must be revoked coupled with a relegation.
Agree. There's absolutely no point of any punishments if the titles aren't revoked. If they don't, its basically saying you can cheat all you want and win everything while FA stumbles for a decade to do anything and then maybe face a year in wilderness even if relegation comes into picture.
 
Juventus, Glasgow Rangers, Bolton, Leeds, Luton and many others. All have been demoted and heavily punished in the past.
What makes City and their fans think they are better and more untouchable than those clubs?!
 
The sad part is that ESPN never even spoke about anything that they could have done wrong. Only praising how good they were.
 
Lineker said before the game ‘City still have the financial fair play over them but that doesn’t take away what Pep has done’. Why is this the stance by so many in the media? Of course it does. Without the financial doping he wouldn’t have a 23 man squad where there is no drop in quality. That’s their advantage over every single club in Europe now.

He doesn’t have to give youth players a chance.

He can leave a £45m signing in Phillips on the bench for an entire season, barely given a chance. Phillips was starting for England before he joined City. The only reason they bought him was to meet the English homegrown quota.

He had an injury in defence and in January spent £70m on Laporte. Now Laporte doesn’t play. We had to bring in Weghorst on loan when were in a similar position.

They can sign Haaland for ‘just £60m’. Then it transpires he’s earning £900k a week and the agent fees involved triple the price tag. Is that element on City’s books like every other club would need to do?
 
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The Premier League is the biggest obstacle in this by far. They are not taking on just a football club, not even a business but a country and a country willing to do what it takes to get it's way.

All we can do is hope the Premier League have learned from UEFAs case, which was successful let's not forget and unlike UEFA, the PL don't have CAS to contend with.

City will employ every tactic in the book, I wouldn't be surprised if they even end up trying to intimidate people if the walls start closing in on them. I've said all along they operate like organised gangs so nothing is beyond them.

An organised gang with unlimited money which can bride British politicians. They’ll simple ‘donate’ to an investment project in Manchester and it will go away. That is the sad state of affairs in this country.
 
We are years away from a resolution. Even at that, the collateral damage from all the punishment people are asking for is so vast the premier league will shy away from it.
The best case scenario is a points deduction and no retrospective punishment.
The media will not want to bang on the doping too much cause there’s a chance City beat the charges.
 
Lineker said before the game ‘City still have the financial fair play over them but that doesn’t take away what Pep has done’. Why is this the stance by so many in the media? Of course it does. Without the financial doping he wouldn’t have a 23 man squad where there is no drop in quality. That’s their advantage over every single club in Europe now.

He doesn’t have to give youth players a chance.

He can leave a £45m signing in Phillips on the bench for an entire season, barely given a chance. Phillips was starting for England before he joined City. The only reason they bought him was to meet the English homegrown quota.

He had an injury in defence and in January spent £70m on Laporte. Now Laporte doesn’t play. We had to bring in Weghorst on loan when were in a similar position.

They can sign Haaland for ‘just £60m’. Then it transpires he’s earning £900k a week and the agent fees involved triple the price tag. Is that element on City’s books like every other club would need to do?

Heard that a few times from pundits representing the BBC, 'it's not the manager though is it', or 'it's not the players though is it', end of conversation.

I mean I'm sure it's just a legal thing, and when they are found guilty they'll be allowed to let rip with how they really feel.
 
We are years away from a resolution. Even at that, the collateral damage from all the punishment people are asking for is so vast the premier league will shy away from it.
The best case scenario is a points deduction and no retrospective punishment.
The media will not want to bang on the doping too much cause there’s a chance City beat the charges.

I think just been found guilty will be enough for many, but you'd expect something pretty severe for them all the same.

By the time it is resolved the Premiership could be a different place, Pep most likely gone, Newcastle on a different level, United hopefully having all the wrongs of the Glazers put right, and City not the dominant force they are now, just thinking it could be a little bit easier to punish them properly if that was case.