Man City FFP: Keys insists PL title win will ‘come with an asterisk’; ‘sticks in your throat’ as a Liverpool fan
Richard Keys claims that if Man City win the Premier League title it will “come with an asterisk” amid the club facing 115 charges over alleged breached of financial fair play rules.
Man City were charged in February 2023 with more than 100 breaches of the competition’s financial fair play regulations dating back to 2009.
The club could face a points deduction or even relegation from the competition if found guilty but Man City have vociferously denied any wrongdoing and vowed to fight their case. It is unclear how long this process will take with some suggestions that proceedings could run for several more years.
Man City went on to win the treble last season. They overhauled Arsenal to claim a fifth Premier League title in six years, followed up by winning the FA Cup and then beat Inter Milan in the Champions League final.
Off the field the club have also grown, recording record revenues last year.
To many critics of the club, which is supported by the vast wealth of owner Sheikh Mansour, the Premier League charges cast a shadow over their success.
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Man City have been under the spotlight more this season with Everton, and more recently Nottingham Forest, given points deductions for breaking FFP rules..
The Citizens look likely to win a Double this season with their 2-0 win over Tottenham on Tuesday night seeing them go two points clear of Arsenal ahead of the final matches of the season on Sunday, while they will face arch-rivals Man Utd in the FA Cup final later this month.
And speaking on beIN Sports about Man City’s potential fourth consecutive Premier League title win in a row and the 115 charges against them, Keys said: “It [Man City’s success] all comes with an asterisk.”
Former Liverpool midfielder Jason McAteer added: “My team, Liverpool, have been hot on their [Man City’s] heels. It does stick in your throat when you think how close we got to Man City and how many titles we could have won. Then you look at the circumstances where they have been able to spend what they want. They’ve had fantastic lawyers and even better accountants.”
Before Keys read out the charges that Man City are facing: “54 failures to provide accurate financial information between 2009 and 2018, 14 failures to provide accurate details for player and manager payments, five failures to comply with UEFA’s rules including Financial Fair Play, seven breaches of the Premier League’s PSR rules, 35 failures to co-operate with the Premier League’s investigations – that’s the charge sheet.”
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