Former Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has pledged his support to the club after an independent commission found them guilty of serious breaches of Premier League financial rules.
Guardiola, who left City at the end of last season after 10 years in charge, handed responsibility to former assistant Enzo Maresca.
“I want every single @ManCity fan to know I am here, more than ever,” Guardiola wrote on X.
“I am, always have been, always will, be behind my club, my owner, my chairman [Khaldoon Al Mubarak], Ferran [Soriano, City’s CEO], the players, staff, Enzo and you, our unique supporters.
“Let me be clear: we will get through this together. I love you all.”
City chief executive Ferran Soriano told staff in a video on Tuesday that he rejected the commission’s findings.
The charges cover the period from 2009-18 and concern alleged “sham” commercial contracts which the Premier League said were used to inflate revenue and understate costs by more than £900m over almost a decade.
The commission found City guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the League’s financial rules over nine seasons, along with three of four charges involving a failure to co-operate with the investigation.
City deny wrongdoing and have until Friday to lodge an appeal, which they have said they will do. No sanction has yet been imposed.
The case could continue for years, with legal challenges also raising questions over compensation claims from other clubs. It remains unclear when any sporting punishment would be announced, whether it would take effect immediately, or whether an appeal would delay it.
Yasin Patel, a London-based sports law barrister, told Reuters: “Unless the Premier League take control and bang their heads together, and say, ‘right, this is it,’ it could take years.”
He said clubs could seek damages for lost income, promotion opportunities, trophies, European places or players they might otherwise have signed.
Patel referred to the decision in June requiring Everton to pay Burnley around £35m over the impact of Everton’s 2022 financial breach, when Burnley were relegated. Everton rejected the finding and their appeal is due to be heard in January 2027.
“Everton-Burnley were two single clubs,” said Alex Goodchild, a sports lawyer at Bray & Krais in London. “In theory, you could have lots of different compensation claims being run on different tracks with different commissions… so it opens up the scope for inconsistency and fragmentation across claims.”
He said the Premier League could attempt to centralise the claims in a process similar to a class action.
Football law expert Stefan Borson expects City’s appeal, which will be heard by a new three-person panel, to be the immediate priority. Patel said sanctions might remain suspended until that process is complete.
The case could also raise questions over ownership and City’s squad. Patel suggested criminal proceedings were possible if senior figures were judged to have misled the Premier League, while both he and Goodchild said players may have relegation release clauses allowing other clubs to sign them for reduced fees.
Guardiola won six Premier League titles, including four successive championships, three FA Cups, five League Cups and the Champions League during his time at City.
