Soccer Saturday reacts to Man City being found guilty on all serious financial charges of PL rules

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Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday panel fiercely debates punishment and fallout after Man City breach

The panel debates how Manchester City should be punished after an independent commission found them in breach of Premier League financial rules, with proposals including stripping trophies, expulsion, repeated points deductions, a transfer ban and heavy fines. The discussion also covers whether players and medals should bear the blame, plus the impact of the delayed appeal and upcoming fixtures.

► Subscribe to Sky Sports News: http://bit.ly/SkySportsNewsSub ► Watch Sky Sports with NOW: https://bit.ly/NOWSkySportsYT Paul Merson, Clinton Morrison, Kris Boyd and Michael Dawson discuss the news that Manchester City were found guilty of all charges related to serious breaches of Premier League financial rules by an independent commission on Soccer Saturday. SkySportsNews SkySports manchestercity ► For the latest developments on this story: https://qrcode.skysports.com/skysports/topstories ► For the latest transfer news: https://qrcode.skysports.com/skysports/TransferCentre More from Sky Sports on YouTube: ► Sky Sports: http://bit.ly/SkySportsSub ► Sky Sports Boxing: http://bit.ly/SSBoxingSub ► Sky Sports Cricket: http://bit.ly/SubscribeSkyCricket ► Sky Sports Darts: https://bit.ly/SubSkySportsDarts ► Sky Sports Football: http://bit.ly/SSFootballSub ► Sky Sports F1: http://bit.ly/SubscribeSkyF1 ► Sky Sports Golf: https://bit.ly/SubscribeSkySportsGolf ► Sky Sports Premier League: https://bit.ly/SubscribeSkySportsPL ► Sky Sports Retro: http://bit.ly/SkySportsRetroSub ► Sky Sports WSL: https://bit.ly/SubscribeSkySportsWSL ► TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@skysportsnews ► X: https://x.com/SkySportsNews ► Website: https://www.skysports.com ► To enquire about licensing Sky Sports content, you can find out more here: https://www.skysports.com/more-sports/news/31754/11434270/license-sky-sports-footage

Transcript

Before we go to the panel, worth reiterating, and we've heard these words a lot over the last few days, and it will carry on. The independent Premier League commission. They have found Man City in breach of the Premier League's financial rules. City continue to deny any wrongdoing and of course have lodged an appeal against the findings. Um, Merc, it was kind of it was smiling defiance for Menzo Moresca yesterday, saying he completely trusts the club. Now, uh, in the future, always will speak, he said, when we win the appeal. The question when that might be, if they do, we have no idea at the moment. But what we do know is the decision of that independent commission. There was some very, very strong views we heard, not least of all from Ian Holloway about what he believes should happen next in terms of punishment. In his view, take everything away, make them start again. What for you would be a proportion of punishment? >> I don't know. You know, I like it and I got all the time in the world free and but if you take everything away, you're punishing the fans as well and it's about the fans. Do you know what I mean? And it's not the fans fault. >> But they're getting punished whatever happens, aren't they? Because forever more, as we'll see, >> they're going to get punished. But if you if you take the trophies off and you hear people go, oh, you take I think it should be swiped. It should be because at the end of the day, they've done something or allegedly done something that got unbelievable footballers. If you go through that squad back in the day, they had two internationals in every position. And if I was playing that then, I'd be very disappointed if I was coming second to that. I would be I'd be I'd be very very disappointed, you know, cuz you can look at Newcastle. Look at poor Newcastle. They got all the money in the world and have to sell Elliot Anderson, you know, because they do it right. So, for me, it's a it's a it's a dodgy one. It's >> And I get I get all that murder, but what's the right punishment? >> The right punishment would be out the league. >> Expulsion from the Premier League expulsion >> to where they play in Saudi Arabia. No. Uh >> it will have to be League 2, would it? I don't know. I I don't know. And you have to start again. But >> you have to be accepted into you have to be accepted into League Two. >> So I Yeah. I mean, you you can't like take Man City away, you know? They got the fans. The fans are the fans. Like it's their club. So you can't let's not get away with oh but they might not let them in and all that. No, you know the fans can't be starting again and calling themselves something else. No, that's not right. This is Manchester. It's still Manchester City and it was here long before the people come in. So for me, we got to be careful on a situation where the fans don't get hurt here. Cuz at the end of the day, the players will be gone, the owners will be gone. Whenever that is in 20, 30, 40 years time, the fans will still be there and they'll be there in a 100red years time. So, we need to make sure we sort it out and the fans don't, you know, don't lose their club. >> But the commission have had to look at what's happened over the course of those nine years, Clinton. They have to take away people's feelings. They have to take away the current players feelings who weren't involved in this period. They have to take away the fans feelings as well and ultimately make a decision and we will find out in due course what that punishment is going to be. What for you would be proportional punishment? >> So, you could yeah, you could al you could kick them out of league, but we were speaking about it before. Or what you can do is every season you deduct them 20 points and listen they're going to be struggling whatever they're not that ain't you ain't going to be challenging for the Premier League but you can >> you handicap them every season for how long for the nine that the >> yeah for the charges that they relate to for sure you you have to get some sort of punishment as M said there >> quite bright for you >> that's quite bright for me yeah I am a bright person every now and again it was mentioned by Sha Dish as well this week but it nick >> no I didn't nick Sha dish >> I don't think it's solely his idea Well, it's a lot. It's not a bad idea. What happens what happens if they get relegated? >> They get relegated. They get relegated. >> Oh, what happens though? They do that and they win the FA Cup and the League Cup and they finish fourth in the league and go and win the Champions. >> But that that would be the risk of doing that. >> Yeah, that would be the risk of doing that. >> A bad idea. >> No, you just said it was a good idea. So, make and then you thought about it. >> I was just shocked by your idea. >> But no, it's like that is something that could happen or if not then you kick them out of the league. But this is going to go go on for a bit of a a long time. But yeah, at the end of the day, they've done wrong. They need to be punished because you have to set an example of other teams can't get away with doing what Man City have done. So at the end of the day, that was my suggestion though. They deduct them points every um season. >> 2012, your old club, Boydy, very very different set of circumstances in 2012 when they had to go all the way down to the bottom of the period and make their way back up. Your second spell, you were part of that comeback as well for Rangers. very very different set of circumstances. What for you would be the right kind of punishment for City? >> I I I don't know and I don't think anybody does. I mean we can all sit here and throw out um you know what we think is the right thing to do but the reality the reality is that I think >> what do you think they'll do? >> The rules have been broken. I mean that's clear but at the same time when you have got people in charge that have got more money than sense and you put wage structure in and you put transfer embargos in and stuff like like when you look at it the wages are as high as I've ever been. So that and the transfers are as high as they've ever been. And I know we maybe get to the here and now, but it's pretty irrelevant, you know, if if you look at those those the the wages and the transfers because they're still through the roof. I mean, the the the prices that sorry, what uh clubs are paying for for players, what they're paying on wages. They've put these embarse rules in, but it doesn't really seem to be stopping anybody. You then go right back to to the start there. And I think when you look at the players that Manchester City signed to start with, all the money was being circulated around the English clubs, you know, when you go right back to, you know, Aston Villa had fee for Gareth Barry, Blackburn for Rocky, Santi Cruz, Tez, Man United, Arsenal, um, had a right chunk for Adi Bay all the other teams. >> Yeah. And and that but that's what I'm going back. So it was getting circular. Now all of a sudden now all of a sudden the money is going out the country, >> you know. So, and it's you're right, you're bringing those players in, it's stopping them. You look at I mean Chelsea have went through I mean Chelsea have been the same problems as well um in terms of you know they were accused of spending money they didn't have and everything that was managed to get sorted out but I think everybody's playing by the rules now you look at it and and you go right back to then where city the answer's going to be no and those how in this because they have to they have to take the emotion out of the decision in terms of what kind of punishment is dished out at the end because it is going to affect players who were never involved in this, employees who were never involved in this, but they're all going to feel the brunt of whatever is ultimately decided. But for those deciding that, they have to take the emotion out of the equation >> 100%. Uh the ind independent commission, they've they found them guilty of 114 charges and now we have to know what the sanctions are going to be. We can all have an opinion and think what it might be points deduction for the next 20 years uh nine years. >> What do you think it should be? Uh, I think I think it should be a transfer embargo because you named them body. I was playing in that era. >> Not only a transfer, >> no transfer embargo, points, points, deductions, huge fines. If they're going to relegate them in my opinion or they get a 60, 80 point deduction this season, they're going to get relegated. So then what happens next year in the Championship? They go and blow it away in my opinion. So they're back into the Premier League and everything's gone. You go back to the names you you said there. I was playing in that era >> and I've always said we had a group of players that were top class. Were we ever capable of winning the Premier League? No. And people looked at you going, "You've gi up." No, we haven't given up. Manchester City were playing the best players. So, how did we go and compete against them? And these players then who went into that the football club people go trophies should be stripped, medals should be taken. Those players won't care what we say. They will not care. They had a group and a togetherness of what they could affect. Winning the football matches, winning trophies. This is upstairs. This is what they've done. They brought the best players in, spent all the money and broke the rules. That's been proven. And now what is the outcome going to be? People can speculate. We don't know. This ind independent commission have to make it and it's going to be huge for Manchester City. Who knows what's going to be. But if they relegate them, they come straight back. >> Would you take would you take away their trophies then and all their medals because I'm not sure about that one because it's cuz that group of players it's not it's not on the players. I understand and everyone will have a different opinion on it. It's not on that that group of players. They still have to I just said the players don't care. They've got memories that will last with them a lifetime. And people saying they cheated. They didn't know what was going on upstairs. They were put together. If someone comes to buy me and go, "You want to go to Manchester City for X?" We begging a group together and Pep Guardiola. People say, "Did he know?" No. His job was to coach this football team. >> He was given the best utility. >> If it's a player, if it's a player, listen, you you're not part of what was going on upstairs. But everyone is now calling that team that achievement. And the label cheat is consistently applied. As a player, you must care, don't you? >> What else can you say though as a player? >> Yeah. What else can you say as a player? You're going to say that. There's nothing else. There's nothing else can be said. But the reality is, as Dors, they've still had to go on a pitch and win games of football, and they've done that. Yes, they might have been, but I mean, we speak about the money that they've had to spend. It might not have been on the starting 11. It could easily been on the ones who were, you know, used as, you know, as me touched on the two internationals in every every team. Um, it might have been in the ones who were weren't leaving in the squad, but that was able to help them >> in the training pitch. It was able to push the players who who started um the games to get to a level that um you know, if you're going to win championships, you need to get to. But I for me, the whole those those players have experienced that moment. It doesn't matter whatever you say are about they will never ever forget that those those players have experienced that moment. I think what's being questioned now is the integrity of the league and that's what needs to be s sorted. >> Ask yourself one question. Would Man City have won the Premier League if they didn't do what they were doing? Absolutely no chance. No chance. Because they wouldn't have been able to. They would have been so far behind everybody else because of the revenue they were bringing in with the PSR and all that kind of stuff. they would have been left behind. So all of a sudden what they done made them win the league and that's what he's done at this time. The players are going there. >> No, but they've won it because of THAT. YES. BECAUSE OF THEM. >> BECAUSE OF THEM UPSTAIRS. They've won the league. They haven't won the league. They haven't won the league. They've won in the league. >> They've won in the league cuz they just put all the best players together. >> But you still have to go out AND PLAY MATCH. >> OH, COME ON. THEY DIDN'T HAVE TO. THEY HAD ALL THE BEST PLAYERS. THEY HAD TWO BEST players in every position. In every position. And they dominated. I used to sit on here and watch the games, right? And teams would go there petrified and they beat teams five, six, seven, and they would destroy teams. It was embarrassing. It was like it was like teams would go there and get their tum stomachs tickled for a 2-nil and they'd come away like like that cuz they was honestly if it weren't for the upstairs, THEY WOULDN'T BEEN ABLE TO NO, I WOULDN'T. NO, I'D HAVE A SOUR TASTE in my mouth. >> So you would So you would have a sour taste if you won the medals. I'm just saying the medals don't matter about the medals. It's the moments. THE MOMENTS. IT'S NOT ABOUT MEDALS. The medals ARE THERE. >> THEY CAN'T TAKE AWAY those moments from you. >> No, you can't. That's what I mean. BUT YOU TAKE A MOMENTS AWAY from other people. LIKE LOOK AT LOOK AT THAT one with Rob Jones and Sir Alec Ferguson and they're waiting at Sunderland. >> Well, Michael Carrick spoke about exactly that yesterday conference. >> Moments all life's all about moments. That's what life's about. And you you've taken it away from other people by doing that what they're doing. >> Nobody's disputing that. But what we're saying is for you if you you were the player had won it. >> Oh no. I'd have you I would have lived that moment. So you've done it. You can't change that time. The time's gone. But you've n they upstairs at Man City have nicked other people's moments in life. >> I'm just aware that we could we could pretty much take up the whole six hours and you'd be pleased to know we will not do that. But Merc, I just want to touch on on the impact because we'll come on to the game a little bit later tomorrow. My goodness me, it's going to be fascinating. Anfield between Liverpool and Man City tomorrow. But you think back to that period when you were at Arsenal, 1995, George Graham dismissed by the club following the payments controversy. You were at the club when there were that pointed deduction after that big scrap in Manchester United as well. What kind of impact did that story, obviously you're involved in the second one, not the first one, have on the players? Does it galvanize? Do you lose your focus? How does it play out? >> The fir what the first one or the Graham George Graham? No. Disappointed. >> You sit there and you think, "Oh my god, I can't believe what you've done." >> Yeah. Yeah. And it it's not great. Yeah. It's not great. I think then when that happened, I think the club for a couple of years sort of just went like that until Arson Wenger come in in my opinion cuz George Graham started it all off. What Arson Wenger done, George Graham started it all off. But yeah, you know the >> But you're the players who still had to go out on the pitch after it. So So what did it do for the dressing room? >> Not not not a lot. No, it weren't one of them backs against the wall. When we lost the two points, that's backs against the wall. And this Man City team now is a dangerous animal >> cuz everybody's against them. The whole world's against them now. You know, there ain't a there ain't a person in the world who doesn't support Man City. Nobody wants Man City to win the league, you know, but that will help them and they become a dangerous dangerous and this needs to be sorted out because it's a bit of a sham >> and they could end up winning the league and that that will be even more >> effect is going to have them. You know what I mean? That's the craziness of it. >> I do feel sorry for these players. >> You don't >> I feel sorry for these players cuz it's nothing to do with them. But at the same time, if that didn't happen back then, >> these players are not on the pitch at Man City. That's quality of player. So, it's just a domino effect. You know, what they've done is been able to bring in 100 million pound players and and top players, which they wouldn't have been able to do. >> Worth reiterating that the George Graham story and the Man City story completely obviously tint just picking up on that talk then about the players now. Whatever M says, what's happened in the past is not their fault. And we we hear a lot about players in times like this just need to concentrate on the football that it'll bring the the dressing room together. How do you see this playing out for the City players because it's not just going to be tomorrow, it's going to be the next game, the game after that, the rest of the season and beyond. >> We're going to be talking about them every time they win. It's not going to you talk about the win and then we go back and Yeah. and stuff. But I think they'll kick on. I I do I think the game they've got tomorrow against Liverpool is a perfect game for them cuz you go to Anfield it's going to be hostile and they have got leaders and characters in that dressing room now that will be able to handle that. They will be able to handle it. Those players, a lot of those players have won a lot of things in that dressing room. So, they will be able to handle it. And it, as Merc just said, a situation like this, you think everyone's against you and as a team. So, you have to stick together, keep it everything in house and then go on the pitch and perform. And that's all those players can do. Sai as a player and everyone will tell you, hey, you you can't take um care of outside noise or what's happening above. All you can take care of are when you get paid your wages, you cross that white line. You can look yourself in the mirror and say I produced and I put in a shift for myself, my teammates and the fans as well because it's the fans that are suffering and that's who you feel sorry for in this. But I think this group of players will galvanize and kick on. But as Bod just said there, you need it sorted sooner rather than later. >> But that's the problem. That's the problem because this this appeal process in itself is a 12week process. Just in this case, this appeal we're looking at Christmas before we've got something out there. So you know that that's the problem is it because yesterday talking in his press conference said look we need some clarity. The reality is for the next few weeks and probably way beyond that. We're not going to have that clarity are we? >> No. Um but it's a knock on effect as well. You know you speak there about you know the FA Cup and the League Cup and things like that. The big one let's not be kided is the Champions League as well. So I mean that is mega money for teams that have missed out in and qualifying for that. You look at what could happen this year. There is no doubt that there will be I mean as soon if I mean if if it doesn't if it doesn't Yeah. But if it doesn't if it doesn't go Man City's way there will be the domino effect after that is still to come because you'll have everybody you missed out a Champions League spot. There's been plenty of other teams have missed out. There's been plenty of teams have relegated off the bracket. Then all of a sudden it's just going to it's going to snowball. Um so as I you say 12 weeks good luck. Yeah. And for now in terms of UAE for what they may or may not do, it is pure