October 2 – Manchester City should face the “appropriate consequences” if wrongdoing is established, a spokesperson for British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said on Thursday, clarifying earlier remarks from the PM.
Burnham’s remarks came as club the formally appealed the independent commission’s verdict saying that the ruling contained “clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe”.
Still claiming that they are innocent of breaking the financial regulation, the club said it had filed “a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence [that] exists in support of all of its positions” on Thursday evening.
Around the same time, a number ten spokesperson clarified Burnham’s remarks which had expressed concern over potentially losing the Abu Dhabi owners of Manchester City for the breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules.
The spokesperson said: “As the Prime Minister made clear, the initial judgement is serious and there can’t be any suggestion that anyone is above the rules.
“He also stressed that it is an ongoing independent process. It is essential that it is allowed to run its course and the outcome respected.
“If wrongdoing is established, those responsible should face the appropriate consequences.”
A day earlier, Burnham, previously the mayor of Greater Manchester, had told the BBC that “I would be really concerned to lose them.” He credited the owners as “a huge partner in the building of modern Manchester.”
An Everton fan, Burnham seemed to draw a parallel between City’s guilty verdict and the handling of a disciplinary case against Everton. He argued that Everton were “not fairly treated.” He said: “I remember people proclaiming Everton guilty at the time and with hindsight I think more people would say that wasn’t fair, the way that was handled.
“So it would be wrong of me to leap to one side given the experience that I’d had before becoming Prime Minister.”
The independent commission found that City used “sham” contracts with commercial partners as part of scheme to channel more than £800 million in secret funding to the club. The Premier League said that City “systematically broke Premier League Rules for nearly a decade”.
In a statement on Tuesday, the club maintained its innocence and indicated that it would appeal. It wrote: “The Club is innocent of the accusations made by the Premier League and a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence exists in support of all of its positions, relating to this case. The Club will therefore be relentless, and where necessary proactive, in any and all appropriate regulatory and legal forums.”
“The Premier League process remains ongoing, with significant elements uncompleted. Manchester City FC will now pursue the appeal avenues open to it, on the basis that the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact, and is unsafe.”
The BBC reported that City will claim on appeal that key sponsorship deals were funded by the Abu Dhabi government, rather than the club’s owners.
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