MANCHESTER CITY’S guilty verdict could make some of the Premier League’s most iconic moments virtually meaningless.
City were found guilty of all but one of the Prem’s 115 charges in relation to breaches of their financial rules.
The news has sent shockwaves across football and the club’s immediate future is in huge doubt.
It’s not been decided what sanctions City will face, but there have been some claims they could be handed huge points deductions, fines or even EXPULSION from the league.
City, who have always denied the allegations, are expected to appeal against the shock verdict.
The club were charged by the Premier League following an investigation into alleged breaches between 2009 and 2018.
Suggestions have already been made that titles could be stripped from the Cityzens from across that nine-year period.
Fans will remember a series of memorable moments from City’s trophy wins during that time.
The most notable of those is without doubt Sergio Aguero‘s dramatic winner against QPR to seal their first ever Prem title in 2011-12.
The spine-tingling moment saw City pip rivals Manchester United to the title on the final day after their remarkable comeback from 2-1 down.
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Aguero was seen wheeling away and swinging his shirt above his head as Martin Tyler’s famous commentary said: “I swear you’ll never see this again.”
The same season saw Man City thump United 6-1 at Old Trafford, with Mario Balotelli scoring a memorable strike that was followed by an even more iconic celebration.
The controversial Italian striker lifted up his shirt to reveal lettering that read: “Why always me?”
Another moment that would be seemingly erased would come from a game that didn’t even technically involve City.
Liverpool were beaten 2-0 at home by Chelsea in the 2013-14 season in a pivotal result that swung the momentum back in City’s favour.
The Reds – then managed by Brendan Rodgers – had been on a 11-game winning streak at the time and closing in on the title.
But a calamitous slip by Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard allowed Demba Ba to score the opener, before Willian added gloss to the scoreline.
The result meant Liverpool’s title fate was out of their hands as City won all four of their remaining games to clinch the league crown.
What were Man City charged with?
MAN CITY have been found guilty of all but one of the 115 charges they were initially hit with.
Those charges were upped to 130 and fit into the following six categories…
- Failing to give accurate financial information over sponsorship revenue, related parties and operating costs between 2009-10 and 2017/18. Total charges: 50
- Failing to provide full details of managerial remuneration between 2009/10 and 2012/13. Total charges 8
- Failing to provide full details of player remuneration between 2010/11 and 2015/16. Total charges 12
- Failing to comply with Uefa Licencing and Financial Fair Play regulations between 2013/14 and 2017/18. Total charges 5
- Breaching Premier League Profitability and Sustainability rules between 2015/16 and 2017/18. Total charges 25
- Failing to co-operate with the Premier League investigation between 2018/19 and 2022/23. Total charges 30
- Total charges: 130
And who could forget Man City winning the 2017-18 Prem title with a record total of 100 points, making them the league’s first centurions.
They pulled off that incredible feat by scoring 106 goals along the way to put themselves in the history books.
Man United boss Jose Mourinho at the time said coming second to City in that season was one of his greatest achievements in football.
He said: “I won eight championships and three Premier Leagues but I keep feeling the second [place] last season was one of my biggest achievements in the game.”