A huge points deduction: the potential punishment facing Manchester City revealed

A pivotal decision set to shake up the balance of the competition

Journalist Oliver Holt revealed in his article for the British newspaper “Daily Mail”, exclusive information about the punishment Manchester City are expected to face over financial breaches in the Premier League.

In his article, Holt wrote: “Over the weekend, remarks were repeated by a number of football commentators and analysts, in which they pointed out that the battle for the Premier League title this season has already become confined to two clubs. Denial is a comfortable way to deal with the facts, especially in an industry worth billions of pounds sterling.”

He added: “Perhaps those commentators meant Arsenal and Brighton as the leading contenders to compete for the titles, and if that is the case, then I apologise for my mistaken assumptions. But if the title race is going to be confined to two clubs, neither of them should be Manchester City.”

Holt continued: “Manchester City have indeed started the current season in stunning fashion. Even by the high standards the club has grown used to achieving in recent years, winning their opening seven league matches is a notable achievement, especially with the departure of Pep Guardiola and Enzo Maresca taking over the leadership of the team. But this strong start does not dispel the shadows hanging over the club, and may in fact make them stretch further.”

He went on: “Perhaps the wave of justifications, evasions and absurd propaganda emanating from oil states, which speaks of the existence of a red bloc targeting the club, has obscured the fact that Manchester City were found guilty, late last month, by an independent panel, of committing the vast majority of the 115 financial breaches with which the Premier League had charged them.”

The journalist added: “In any sports league operating reasonably normally, this should have led to Manchester City being excluded from the circle of competition for the title this season. The punishment imposed on the club should already have been announced, and given the scale of their breaches, that punishment would certainly have ruled them out of the race for the crown.”

He continued: “The complex and protracted course of the case brought against Manchester City has led to a state of ambiguity and pessimism about how long the rest of football’s clubs will have to wait before a decision is issued regarding the sanctions that will be imposed on the club, as well as the time needed to rule on the appeal they have lodged.”

Holt added: “According to sources close to the course of the case, it is unlikely that Manchester City will face the catastrophic scenario of being expelled from the Premier League and forced to start again in the second division at the start of next season. Expelling the club would plunge both the Premier League and the English Football League into unprecedented chaos, and this step would also be harmful to both bodies themselves.”

He continued: “It is believed that the Premier League is pushing for the punishment imposed on Manchester City to be announced before the result of the appeal lodged by the club is issued, an appeal that is unlikely to be decided before the end of January.”

According to the journalist: “Information held by sources with knowledge of the case indicates that the most likely punishment is the deduction of a huge number of points, in a way that guarantees Manchester City’s relegation to the First Division, alongside an enormous financial fine.”

He concluded: “It is also possible that the punishment will include the deduction of further points, in a way that would effectively keep Manchester City in the First Division for at least an additional season. The First Division league would not be obliged to accept this punishment against one of its clubs, but it is likely to agree to it.”

This article first appeared on Goal.com and was syndicated with permission.

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