Man City FFP: Expert reveals ‘bad signal’ for Citizens as Monday verdict claim is made
Man City have been told that if the wait for a verdict in their FFP case goes “way beyond the summer” then it would be a “bad signal” for the Citizens.
An independent commission hearing to examine 115 charges laid by the Premier League against Man City started in September and ended in December.
The Premier League opened an investigation into Man City way back in 2018 and after a number of legal delays, charges were finally laid in February 2023 and the club were referred to an independent commission.
The charges against the Citizens relate to the requirement to accurately report financial information, including around the value of sponsorship deals, the submission of details of manager and player pay information and to a club’s responsibility as a Premier League member to adhere to UEFA’s financial regulations and to the league’s own profitability and sustainability rules (PSR).
They are also accused of failing to co-operate with the league’s investigation. In all, there are charges relating to every season between 2009-10 and 2022-23.
And now former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson insists it “wouldn’t be a massive surprise” if a verdict was revealed on Monday.
Borson told Football Insider: “We’re just coming into the early stages of when it really could have been coming out.
“To be perfectly honest with you, if it came out on Monday, it wouldn’t be a massive surprise. But likewise, it wouldn’t be a massive surprise if it came out in June.
“Unfortunately, we are dealing with very complicated deliberations, but also just a very long, very detailed judgment and decision that’s needed.
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“If you listen to 12 weeks of evidence, it’s going to take some time to write up your findings.
“Now, I do think the sooner the better for City, not only in terms of disruption to the club but also just the likelihood that they’ve prevailed on the important stuff.
“I do think that if it went on a very long time, say way beyond the summer, that would be a bad signal.
“But right now, I think it’s broadly neutral as to whether it’s come out or not. I don’t think you can read anything into that at all.
“There were insiders or lawyers that were apparently saying it was going to be January. I would go so far as to say that was possibly impossible.
“If you looked at how long the APT hearing took to get a result, that took two months, and that was a two-week hearing. It was relatively simple.
“These things just take time, and people just have to wait. It’s irritating, but it’s just the way it is.”