Liverpool’s title rivals Manchester City have been locked in legal battle with the Premier League in court over their alleged FFP charges
Manchester City supporters are being cautioned to temper their expectations for updates from the Premier League hearing into alleged financial breaches, as secrecy remains paramount. Charged back in February 2023 with 115 violations of Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules across nearly a decade, and amid confusion upgraded to 130 charges, Liverpool’s rivals have staunchly denied these accusations, asserting they possess “irrefutable evidence” in their defence.
Despite a 19-month delay, proceedings finally commenced in London recently. While the highly confidential location was inadvertently disclosed, resulting in pictures of lawyers including David Pannick, who is rumoured to be earning £5,000 per hour, surfacing in the press, fans looking for insight into the hearing’s progress might find themselves short-changed, reports the Manchester Evening News.
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Former Everton CEO Keith Wyness, in conversation with Football Insider, explained exactly how the case will work: “The secret location was leaked, there were photographs of the lawyers going in and the lead lawyer, David Pannick, is reportedly on £5,000 per-hour. But we’re not going to be hearing much. They have been very clear about that.
“The chairman of the commission will only disclose things he wants to be disclosed, and there’ll be no further reporting. Of course in football, we’re all looking for leaks and, if there are no leaks, then people would be making up leaks, so we’re going to have to be very careful with the information coming out.”
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Amid reports this week indicating that several Premier League clubs are disgruntled by the proposed ‘secrecy’ surrounding the charges and hearing, Wyness expressed his agreement with the sentiment that justice should not only be done but also be seen to be done. He advocates for journalistic presence, saying: “I do believe it should be transparent, because it would add to the penalty. If a club realised it would be dragged through the mud publicly, that might be another way to stop the behaviour we’re trying to fight against.
“It will bore people for the next two months. The detail and minutiae will be incredible and very boring, but there will be bombshell moments.
“I’ve been around these proceedings a couple of times, and they are very boring – it’s not great TV. However, I do believe that if we’re to enforce rules, then justice needs to be seen to be done.
“There’s some value in having some reporters there and giving us an update on proceedings each day. That would be helpful and important.”
Liverpool twice lost out on the title to City by a point in 2019 and 2022, but these occasions fall outside of the nine-year period for which the charges relate to. Therefore, those crowns are not at risk of being stripped from City.
