01 Oct 2026 00:37:00
It's a sad fact that so often money trumps morality and decency. Football long ago sold it's soul to money.

Now the City wagons are drawing tighter together with Pep and Etihad Airways joining the counter offensive. That's to be expected. If City lose Guardiolas achievements count for little. Etihads owners will naturally support their "brother owners" especially as where they come from corruption and bribery is not unknown.

What's more disturbing is our Prime Minister being interviewed and appearing to be more worried about City being convicted than the truth being revealed.

I understand that City have been a force for good in regenerating deprived parts of Manchester but if they did this with "dirty" money by cheating and breaking rules it undermines so much of what they did.

More importantly I detest any Prime Minister who is prepared to back a cheat. Our leaders are supposed to set the rest of the country a good example and punish miscreants not cow tow to them no matter how rich they are or how much they donate to this country.

I appreciate the economic fallout from this could have big economic consequences for this country but some things are worth more than money.

1.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 03:48:12
From the bit of the interview I heard he didn't go quite so far as to back a cheat. He did say that the investments by the club in Manchester had been of great value to the city and it would be a shame to lose that. That's not unfair. What have our owners done? Run the club into the ground.

He's apparently an Everton supporter and campaigned for the club against their punishment, which did ultimately see the penalty reduced after errors were adjudged to have been made. He said he didn't want to take sides but you could maybe tell he was soured by the PL's treatment of Everton. I think any fan would be.

The apparent scale of the subterfuge compared to the Everton case and the effect on all the other EPL teams over a long period of time is of a so much greater order that it's hard to imagine what a fair penalty would be. The judgment covers a period from 2009-2018 but even if the club doesn't cheat any more, the reality is that today's success and the clubs ability to pay top $ for everything is based on the sustained prior period of cheating for the years in question. It's not unlike a criminal; getting rich and then reverting to legitimate businesses once a lot of money has been made.

2.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 08:44:35
He should have kept out of this. His express mention of the investment made in Manchester the City immediately raises red flags. Yes there has been huge investment but first and foremost this is a football matter.

He should have said "this is something that the football authorities must deal with and I won't comment further until they have".
, instead his comments make me suspicious that his former role as Mayor and current position as PM will be used because of the huge amount of money previously invested and potentially might be invested by thy City owners in this country. It's an understandable thing but not the right one for him to get involved.

This is about the whole integrity of our national game and something that he should have really emphasised giving his own personal background this is about how we the fans have been sold a lie and dreams realised by some now crushed.

3.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 09:47:53
This is exactly what sports washing is, making people look the other way by throwing money at it whilst you're doing all of your dodgy things. The fact they are still denying all of this really worries me and if they get away with it I think that will be me done with football.

I'll never go and watch United against City whilst they still have these owners, what's the point, the game would mean nothing, we know what they are.

4.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 09:53:57
The PM shouldn't be making comments about Man City and should be focusing on running the Country instead.

5.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 11:12:14

It has absolutely f*** all to do with Andy Burnham and he should keep his nose out of it.

6.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 14:12:43
You guys are being way too harsh.

I watched his speech at the Labour conference. He is clearly highly focused on running the country.

Having been mayor of Manchester for 9 years he's also going to be highly attuned to what's good for the city, and I don't see how this matter enhances its, or indeed the country's economic wellbeing. From Brexit onwards, the UK has made itself a far less attractive place to invest in anything as it is.

Also, because of his connection to the city, he's obviously going to be asked about it, whether he likes it or not.

We all suspect that the findings are true, despite Citeh's protestations. Nevertheless, rushing to judgment works both ways.

The negative reaction is completely over the top.

7.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 14:28:22
Yh this is the elephant in the room, the UK is tied to the UAE and other gulf states for investment like the investment that's taken place in Manchester or Canary Wharf as examples.

I honestly can't see to severe a punishment for City as to put future investment into jeopardy. Andy Burnham has just said the quite part out loud that no one wants to really acknowledge as they are too busy enjoying Citys negative press coverage.

8.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 18:03:12
DSG, you are probably right, but isn't this the ultimate point. that someone or body of authority with a backbone stands up and says "No. you can stuff your money. we are not for sale. Some things are worth more than money".

At the moment it looks like GB Plc is on sale to the highest bidder no matter how reputable they are.

9.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 20:16:42
Newname,

If he was clearly focussed on running the country his comments would be more about growth, economics & how to deal with a bond market in meltdown. Yet he made no comment about that, then came out with an inappropriate comment about the City situation, then when realising how bad it was, oops, issued another statement about whether wrongdoing was established, almost forgetting a guilty verdict had been announced, hence compounding the initial error, making it worse, that's amateur.


This isn't just about rivalry, this is something that politics and politicians should go nowhere near, not least because it sounds like favouring a club over the main governing body but also because it is interfering with a set process and that opens a whole set of further questions. It can make everyone feel like there is a political reason, so he can say well we tried, please don't stop investing in Manchester. What about the rest of the country?

My concern is that if the Premier League are thwarted after the position they have taken, that City are then in control of the rules, we won't have a league that means anything.

10.) 01 Oct 2026
01 Oct 2026 22:22:58
Interesting that the PM has today distanced himself from the case. Obviously aware now of how his statement yesterday was inappropriate.