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The Premier League has charged Manchester City with more than 100 breaches of its financial rules following a four-year investigation.
It has referred the club to an independent commission over alleged rule breaches between 2009 and 2018.
It also accused Man City of not co-operating since the investigation started in December 2018.
Man City has said they were “surprised” by the charges and are supported by a “body of irrefutable evidence”.
The commission can impose punishments ranging from a fine and points deduction to expulsion from the Premier League.
“Manchester City is surprised by the issuing of these alleged breaches of the Premier League Rules, particularly given the extensive engagement and vast amount of detailed materials that the EPL has been provided with,” the club said in a statement.
“The club welcomes the review of this matter by an independent commission, to impartially consider the comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence that exists in support of its position.
“As such we look forward to this matter being put to rest once and for all.”
Last season Man City won their sixth Premier League title since the 2008 takeover by the Abu Dhabi United Group.
What are the charges levied on Manchester City?
In a statement, the Premier League said Man City breached rules requiring them to provide “accurate financial information that gives a true and fair view of the club’s financial position”.
This information covered club revenue, which includes sponsorship income and operating costs.
Further alleged breaches relate to rules requiring full details of manager remuneration – from the 2009-10 to 2012-13 seasons, when Roberto Mancini was in charge of and player remuneration between 2010-11 and 2015-16.
The Premier League said Man City breached rules related to Uefa regulations, including Financial Fair Play (FFP), from 2013-14 to 2017-18, as well as Premier League rules on profitability and sustainability from 2015-16 to 2017-18.
In 2020 European football governing body Uefa ruled that City committed “serious breaches” of FFP regulations between 2012 and 2016.
However, a two-year ban from European competitions was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport later that year.
Uefa began its investigation into Man City after German newspaper Der Spiegel published leaked documents in November 2018 alleging the club had inflated the value of a sponsorship deal.
The proceedings of the commission – chaired by Murray Rosen KC – will be confidential and heard in private.
When the Premier League investigation began, Man City said the allegations were “entirely false” and that allegations in Der Spiegel came from “illegal hacking and out of context publication of City emails”.
City were not given advance warning of the Premier League statement. They always said the detail published by Der Spiegel when it was passed information by Football Leaks was incomplete.
When Uefa launched its case, City said they had no faith in that investigation and, when it went against them, they went straight to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, where they were cleared of what they regarded as the substantive allegations, even though some were timed out.
They will be armed with the very best lawyers, looking line by line at every element of the Premier League’s case.
The charge sheet includes five years of allegations thatMan City have not assisted with their inquiry, which is all of it.
The whole thing will be expensive and it will drag on.
Man City manager, Pep Guardiola has always said he was assured by his employers that they have done nothing wrong.
Right now, the fate of Man City is murky at best amidst these charges.
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