How Man City could line up in Championship after relegation as five huge stars stay and wonderkids arrive
Manchester City could be punished in a variety of ways if their appeal against serious breaches of the Premier League and UEFA's financial rules fails - with the most damaging of those being potential relegation.
City were found guilty of the most serious of their 115 charges by an independent commission, with both Premier League and UEFA regulations found to have been breached. The club continue to stress their innocence and say they have 'irrefutable evidence' to prove their position. They have submitted an appeal, which will be heard within 12 weeks.
The Independent reported on Monday that unnamed executives had discussed an 'interim punishment' for City during their 3-0 win over Liverpool on Sunday, which would see them be expelled from the league if a majority of 15 other clubs vote in favour using Rule 6B. With the appeal process ongoing, however, matters are set to be delayed further - with City even able to go to the High Court if the appeal hearing does not find in favour of them.
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Whether relegation occurs or not, in the event of a guilty verdict being upheld, is hypothetical at this stage, with any sanctions likely to be discussed in much more detail if necessary after that announcement as made.
But with all that in mind, we've taken a look at what City's side could look like if they are relegated to the Championship.
Man City's predicted Championship starting XI named
One key aspect City have in their favour, if a guilty verdict is confirmed, is their exceptionally strong academy system.
The club have developed some of the top youngsters in the country and turned them into genuine top division stars - though it is understandably difficult to break through into City's first team given the depth of talent they currently have.
The three divisions of the EFL is littered with young talent from City who are hoping to impress enough to break through into Enzo Maresca's first team squad, or simply earn big moves away from the club. Think of Liam Delap, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, James McAtee and Callum Doyle, to name a few, in recent years.
With City down in the Championship, some of their top academy talents would see it as the perfect opportunity to establish themselves at what would still be, despite the hypothetical relegation, still one of the most attractive English football clubs to play for. So we've tried to incorporate that into our predicted XI, as well as the retention of some existing key players and the arrivals of young talents from Europe - assuming Premier League clubs would not want to do business with City. And yes, manager Enzo Maresca, who got promoted out of the second tier with Leicester in 2024, stays.
A relatively straightforward position to start with is in goal, with Pierce Charles currently in outstanding form on loan at Championship side Queens Park Rangers. The Northern Irishman, who returned to his former junior club from Sheffield Wednesday in the summer, is strong in both shot-stopping and distribution and could easily be starting for City in the coming seasons even if they stay in the top flight.
At the back, we're predicting that homegrown talents Rico Lewis and Nico O'Reilly stick it out at the Etihad Stadium for a season to help City get back into the Premier League - with O'Reilly in a particularly strong position in that he is now fully established in Thomas Tuchel's England squad, with few challengers.
In central defence, Stephen Mfuni will slot into City's side after what is already proving to be a fruitful Premier League loan spell at newly-promoted Coventry City. He'll be joined by Abdukodir Khusanov, who we also predict will stay at City. The Uzbek international has a contract until 2031.
Looking into defensive midfield, Ayyoub Bouaddi will enter his second season at City after his £100 million move from Lille. The Morocco international was in high demand in the summer but hasn't yet started a Premier League game under Enzo Maresca - he may be one of the players who decides that a season in the second tier isn't quite the end of the world.
He's joined by Elliot Anderson, another nine-figure summer buy who, like O'Reilly, is in a strong position with England and could possibly afford to play a season in the second tier.
They will be supported further forward by Phil Foden, the biggest name yet to commit his short-term future to City in our prediction. Foden has spent his entire career with City and would undoubtedly be positioned as their leading light to get back to the top of English football. He could follow Jarrod Bowen's lead at relegated West Ham this season and negotiate a restructured contract - as could other players in this XI.
In forward areas is where things get slightly more challenging. Divine Mukasa would surely get his chance after a season-long loan with West Ham, where he has played largely as a central midfielder but can play further forward, but we're predicting that Antoine Semenyo will be another of the existing City contingent to stay at the club. Semenyo rose from non-league to Premier League before joining City from Bournemouth last year. And young winger Allan Ruiz has recently joined the club from Brazilian side Palmeiras - it would be hard to see him leaving so soon.
Where would Man City's other players go?
There is not much precedent when it comes to elite level teams being forcibly relegated from a division, with Juventus in 2006/07 the most comparable case.
After Juve were demoted to Serie B following the Calciopoli scandal, a number of star players left the club on permanent deals, including Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Patrick Vieira, Fabio Cannavaro and Lilian Thuram.
But many players opted to stay and helped them bounce straight back to Serie A. Gianluigi Buffon, captain Alessandro Del Piero, Pavel Nedved and David Trezeguet all stuck around to play in the second tier of Italian football.
The money involved in football has changed since then, though, and while there would be significant interest in City's players, many could choose to go out on loan to play Champions League football before picking up on where they left off with City after promotion. The likes of Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku, Josko Gvardiol and Gianluigi Donnarumma could all do just that, or alternatively leave permanently.
But another reason behind why this is such a hypothetical scenario is because of the Championship's new rule change for 2026/27, which allows clubs to spend 85 per cent of their total football revenues and income on first team squad costs - and is the reason why we've not included some of City's higher earners in this prediction.
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The EFL probably didn't envisage a scenario where a club with as much revenue as City would be playing in the Championship, but that regulation could determine exactly what City do in the market - and is exactly why they might have no choice but to take the loan route with many of their existing players, or sell them permanently.
Topics: Man City, EFL Championship, Premier League
Ryan Smart