Former Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola threw his weight behind the club on Wednesday after a bombshell verdict on Premier League financial rule breaches plunged their future into serious doubt. The former boss broke his silence 24 hours after it was announced that the Abu Dhabi-backed club had been found guilty of more than 100 breaches of financial rules in the world’s richest domestic league.
Premier League chief executive Richard Masters described the disciplinary case and the decision by an independent commission as the “most significant in Premier League history”.
“If the appeal fails, Manchester City cannot stay in the league, they have to suffer.
He said City “systematically broke Premier League rules for nearly a decade”, adding that the league was committed to a swift resolution. The likely punishment is uncertain but, according to Premier League rules, City could face a substantial points deduction, a fine or even expulsion from the top division. “I want every single @ManCity fan to know I am here, more than ever,” said the Spaniard, who won six Premier League titles and the Champions League in a golden decade at the helm. In doing so, they concealed the true state of their finances but the commission said that the club were “significantly in breach of both the Premier League’s and UEFA’s spending limits”. And I say that as a supporter and a fan,” said the club’s former chairman, David Bernstein. Former City defender Micah Richards, who was part of the side that won the club’s first top-flight league title for 44 years in 2012, said the uncertainty was “heartbreaking”.
