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Man City punished for breaking financial fair play rules
The big news this week has been dominated by Manchester City as they were handed a 2 year Champions League ban and a £25m fine for allegedly breaching FFP (financial fair play) rules by UEFA. Whilst the club have absolutely denied any wrong doing, the work gone into this process by UEFA would suggest otherwise. So there is a lot to talk about here.
The first is that City will appeal and even if they fail in that process initially there are at least three courts in Europe they can appeal to. The ban would start from the next Champions League and would mean that everything they have done in the league this season would effectively be reduced to nothing. There is a situation though where City could well drag out the appeals so long that September would come by and the club would have to participate in that seasons Champions League because they would still be under appeal. One feels that UEFA have made errors here. Was handing down a 2 year ban simply a shock statement. It has been proven that once clubs appeal to a higher court they usually get let off or get a much reduced fine. It was also very ironic that City would be handed a £25m fine on top of their ban and yet when horrific racist violence and chanting goes on in stadiums that figure barely reaches £100,000.
It does feel that UEFA know they could lose their case against City, or at the very least City will not miss 2 years, possibly it could be reduced or even quashed by a higher court. At the same time if UEFA do have evidence that City have breached the rules then at the same time it would seem very wrong if the club were let off on appeal. At the end of the day clubs have signed up to the FFP agreement and you have to play the season following the rules, every other club has, so why not City?
And what if the ruling is upheld and City really are banned for 2 years? Surely that could see some of their best players leave too? Even without a ban it has been hinted for some time that stars such as Sergio Aguero and David Silva are leaving the club anyway. But there are others in the team that are reaching that age right in their prime where no elite European football may harm their career and it would seem unlikely that the club would step in their way if they wanted a move. Then there is the case of Pep Guardiola, certainly he would leave in the summer. Although he has come out and said that he wouldn't, his contract runs until next summer where he will leave anyway, so why would he stay this season without Champions League football. Managers of the calibre of Guardiola do not participate in seasons without it. His comments probably reflect the fact that he feels confident that on appeal City won't be banned, or at least will drag out the appeal so his last season with the club will still see Champions League football. Ultimately, football = money and power, both of which Manchester City possess in great volume and it really would not be a surprise to see the club come out of this as winners.
Have Arsenal found their form?
Could Arsenal's 4-0 win over Newcastle be a watershed moment for the Gunners who have been poor by their standards this season? Whilst the club were mostly outplayed in the first half of the game, they scored 4 second half goals and Nicolas Pepe finally had a very good game for the club after his £70m signing from Lille last summer. This weekend's clash with Everton will be huge given that Everton are in 9th and Arsenal are in 10th and if the Gunners can win that game they could make a big splash back into the top 10, but lose it and finally they would see some distance in points between them and the rest of the top 9 clubs.
More injury problems for Tottenham
Just when it looked like Tottenham were making a dash for a top 4 place they have been handed yet another striker blow. Harry Kane is already out long term and manager Jose Mourinho had only Heung-Min Son as his regular striker, but the South Korean has an arm injury and Mourinho is predicting that he will miss most of the season. With Champions League games and a Premier League run in coming up this is a huge blow to the club and one wonders if it will derail their chances of success this season? This comes after Son scored 2 goals as Tottenham beat Aston Villa in a very entertaining game with the final score ending 3-2 to the north London team.
Champions League already looking very interesting
Liverpool and lost doesn't usually go in the same sentence, but that is what happened to the club when they faced Atletico Madrid in the first leg at Wanda Stadium. Atletico won 1-0 and looked good for their win, though one wonders if manager Diego Simeone fully realises the electric and daunting atmosphere that will await Atletico at Anfield for the 2nd leg? Many a team in the competition, namely Barcelona last season seemed to take it very lightly and got punished. Despite losing 1-0 Liverpool will still be the favourites to go through to the quarter finals and what a fascinating match that will be.
In the other game played Borussia Dortmund beat PSG 2-1 courtesy of two goals from man of the moment Erling Haaland, who is looking like a very special player indeed. His pace is unbelievable and he has scored 24 goals in his last 19 league matches, that second leg is evenly poised.
Champions League winners odds: Manchester City 5.00, Liverpool 6.00, Bayern Munich 7.00, Barcelona 8.00, PSG 10.00
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