7 mad things that have happened since Man City’s 115 charges
They say the wheels of justice turn slowly but when it comes to Manchester City‘s ongoing FFP case, it can feel like the wheels are finally starting to move.
The Athletic are reporting that the sanctions have not been decided but that the independent panel has reached its decision, finding the club guilty of all but one count.
The investigation, appeals and court cases have all been kept behind closed doors, making every bit of recent City success feel marked with an asterisk but while the Premier League drags its heels, the footballing world has been carrying on.
Here are seven things that have happened in the time since City were charged back in February 2023.
City have won eight trophies
While the battle in the courtroom was going on, City have proven to be rather successful on the pitch and have picked up eight trophies since the charges were first announced.
Chief amongst them was the 2023 Champions League which not only marked the first time the Manchester club had won the trophy but also completed a treble, making them just the second English team to do so, alongside their neighbours.
Erling Haaland has scored 106 goals for City
Haaland’s arrival at City was during the season that the charges were first brought and since then, he has pretty much not stopped scoring.
He had his best season in 2022-23, scoring 36 in all competitions, but has hit a total of 106 goals in the time it has taken the Premier League to work on its case.
Ange Postecoglou’s entire Premier League career has come and gone
Ange Postecoglou’s managerial stocks were at its highest in February 2023 as he was well on his way to guiding Celtic to the league title.
His performance north of the border earned him the Tottenham job and it is hard to believe that he has gone through two jobs in the time it has taken for the 115 charges to play out.
Two Premier League clubs have been docked points
In the time it has taken City and the Premier League to argue it out in the courts, two other Premier League clubs have been docked points.
The first was Everton who, just a few months after City’s charges were announced, were initially docked 10 points due to breaches of PSR. They appealed and it was reduced to six but they were later docked a further two for a second breach.
Nottingham Forest also lost four points in the 2023-24 season for breaching PSR.
Leicester too can be included in the list for they have been docked points this season for breaching PSR, even though they are currently in the Championship.
47 Premier League managers have been sacked
This stat says two things: One, the case of Manchester City has been going on for absolutely ages and two, Premier League clubs sack a lot of managers.
Since the 115 charges were first announced in early February 2023, 47 managers have lost their jobs.
To the surprise of absolutely no one, it is Chelsea and Nottingham Forest who have sacked the most and are tied with Southampton on four.
Wolves, West Ham, Tottenham and Leicester have all sacked three managers in the same timeframe.
As for the individuals, Ange Postecoglou, Gary O’Neil, Graham Potter, Julen Lopetegui, Sean Dyche and Steve Cooper have all been sacked twice, showing the Premier League managerial merry-go-round is alive and well.
Only Arsenal and Aston Villa have been in the Premier League that whole time and not sacked their manager.
Wrexham went from non-league to almost reaching the Premier League
In the first game after City’s charges were announced, Wrexham beat Wealdstone in the National League.
Three-and-a-half years later and they are solidly mid-table in the Championship, having narrowly missed out on last season’s play-offs.
While the amount of money poured into the club means it is not quite the fairytale story that Disney+ would have you believe, Wrexham’s back-to-back-to-back promotions are still impressive and while many thought the Championship would be their first roadblock, they are so far passing that test.
At the time of City’s charges, it could have been joked that they would end up playing Wrexham if they were kicked out of the Football League. That fixture now seems a lot more possible.
City have spent over £1bn
City have spent an enormous amount of money since being charged with spending too much money.
In the seven transfer windows that have occurred since their charges were announced, City have splashed out over £1billion in fees.
The most notable were Enzo Fernandez and Elliot Anderson, signed for a combined £240m, alongside Ayyoub Bouaddi for £81.4million.
Josko Gvardiol and Omar Marmoush cost a combined £145m and City again dipped their hands in their bottomless wallet to sign Antoine Semenyo in January for £62.5m.
City’s spending has continued and all the while, fans of other clubs have been wondering if they are playing by the same rules.
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