Man City’s ‘irrefutable evidence’ leaks in appeal against Premier League's guilty verdict
Manchester City's claims of 'irrefutable evidence' in their appeal against the Premier League's guilty verdict have been leaked for the first time.
When the independent commission charged the Cityzens with breaching almost all of their 115 financial charges between 2009 and 2018, Man City instantly protested their innocence and claimed they had 'irrefutable evidence' in their appeal against the Premier League's guilty verdict.
City are facing major sanctions for arranging 'sham contracts' and agreements that inflated revenue and concealed expenses by more than £900million during those nine years, with potential punishments including points deductions, expulsion from the top flight, and having titles stripped.
Man City's 'irrefutable evidence' against the Premier League leaked
According to the Independent Football Regulator, City's appeal could be resolved by early next year. There is a 12-week window for the hearing and a further 30 days for judgement.
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It was reported on Monday that unnamed executives had discussed an 'interim punishment' during their 3-0 victory over Liverpool on Sunday, and this would see them expelled from the league if a majority of 15 other clubs vote in favour using Rule 6B.
But the eight-time Premier League champions continue to maintain their innocence in the case, and their 'irrefutable evidence' to support that claim is a trove of emails, letters and bank statements.
The Telegraph revealed on Friday (October 16) that City's legal team will attempt to demonstrate 'fundamental errors' in tests applied by an independent commission to the Premier League’s case after they were charged with inflating revenues by over £900million.
They add that Man City are 'bullish' about their appeal based on two factors, including: 'contemporaneous bank statements, government records and receipts they see as confirming the Abu Dhabi government as the source of funds for financing of deals' and 'more recent evidence from the Abu Dhabi government reaffirming the accuracy of the original records.'
The centre of City's argument is that the independent commission 'overlooked' almost all of their evidence that sponsorship payments came from the Abu Dhabi government.
Etihad Airways, the state-owned airlines who have sponsored Man City since 2009, also released a statement earlier this month which read: "The assertion that the Abu Dhabi government paid for Etihad’s sponsorship of English Premier League football club Manchester City is false.”
In addition, owner and royal family member Sheikh Mansour was said to be unaware of £830million of his money being used for deals branded "sham" - and the word itself - forms part of their appeal.
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The appeal is due to conclude by January 21, and then City will know whether their efforts to protest their innocence are successful.
At the moment, though, they can't escape the headlines, as they're involved in more than just the biggest case in Premier League history.
After their 3-0 win at Anfield, the club allegedly violated Rule K.207 of the Premier League handbook by blocking Enzo Maresca from speaking to talkSPORT and BBC Radio 5 Live.
The rule states: "Each Club participating in a League Match must ensure that each Radio Broadcaster that has the right to the Radio Transmission of that League Match is permitted to interview (a) at least one Player who featured prominently in the League Match and (b) the Manager, following the League Match."
City did not explain this decision, but the Italian tactician did speak to television broadcaster Sky Sports, as well as the rest of the media during his post-match press conference.
The Cityzens are back in action at home to Ipswich on Saturday (October 17) after losing 4-2 against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
Topics: Premier League, Football News, Man City
Thomas Griffin