Kieran Maguire reveals exactly when Man City will learn 115 charges fate as ‘very serious’ verdict explained
Man City should be set to learn the outcome of the hearing into the Premier League’s 115 charges against them imminently.
The Citizens were charged with the alleged rule breaches three years ago, and the hearing ended well over a year ago.
But a judgment is still yet to be handed down, with the outcry at the delay beginning to intensify.
Football finance expert Kieran Maguire has attempted to explain the hold-up, which could finally be brought to an end before the season is wrapped up.
Man City are locked in a race for the Premier League title with Arsenal, and could even be affected by a points deduction.
- Read more: ‘A solution is coming’: Keith Wyness reveals the Premier League’s plan for Man City 115 charges
Why the Premier League have had to wait for Man City outcome
Man City’s 115 charges relate to a number of alleged rule breaches between 2009 and 2018.
The Citizens were acquired by UAE vice president Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan in 2008, and the club are accused of failing to provide accurate financial information, accurate details and several cases of failure to comply with both UEFA and the Premier League’s financial rules.
The charges also include a failure to cooperate with the investigations made into the alleged breaches.
| Manchester City – type of charge | Number of charges |
| Failure to provide accurate financial information 2009-10 to 2017-18 | 54 |
| Failure to provide accurate details for player and manager payments from 2009-10 to 2017-18 | 14 |
| Failure to comply with Uefa’s rules including Financial Fair Play (FFP) 2013-14 to 2017-18 | 5 |
| Breaching Premier League’s PSR rules 2015-16 to 2017-18 | 7 |
| Failure to co-operate with Premier League investigations December 2018 – Feb 2023 | 35 |
Yet in the years since the charges were announced, the likes of Everton and Leicester City have faced swift justice for their own breaches of the financial rules.
Fans have been left frustrated by the lack of action, with no clear explanation being provided for the delay.
Speaking to the Overlap on Tuesday, Maguire said: “I think we’re probably into the final reaches of getting a decision.
“I think part of the challenge has been that because there’s three very senior people who are on the court who are making that final judgment, getting those three together at the same time is actually very difficult, so that’s delayed the case.
“It should be a result in the next few months but we said this before. Pep [Guardiola] was saying last February that he was expecting something.
“There’s an awful lot of evidence to go through and the charges are very, very serious.”
Premier League faces defining moment
In many ways, the outcome of the hearing into Man City’s charges feels like a defining moment for the Premier League.
Should the Citizens be found not guilty, or face a very minute punishment, it will feel as if the league’s authority has been massively undermined.
The Premier League made no secret of their desire to flex their muscles when they hit Man City with so many charges.
But should they prove unsuccessful in their aims to enforce their own rules, then they will have opened the door to further potential breaches in the future.