Man City warned ‘jealous’ rivals are pushing for FFP punishment – with former boxing world champion Ricky Hatton explaining why 115 charges should have Premier League champions ‘worried’

The hearing into supposed monetary mismanagement at the Etihad Stadium across several years, dating back to 2009, has been opened. Little information regarding discussions behind closed doors is leaking out into the public domain, which is allowing the rumour mill to keep ticking over.

It has been suggested that City could be removed from the Premier League if found guilty of financial misdemeanours, with plenty claiming that they should be dumped out of the EFL entirely. There has also been talk of sizeable points deductions, hefty fines and transfer embargoes.

Former boxing world champion Hatton, who is a big City fan, fears envious foes that have seen Pep Guardiola deliver an era of dominance in Manchester are leading calls for harsh sanctions. He has told Prime Casino: “You've got to be worried about the 115 charges, especially when you see what the Premier League have done with Everton and Nottingham Forest for fewer charges. Are the Premier League picking on City because we’ve been successful? Maybe, but there’s certainly a part of me that thinks some of the other clubs in the league will be making a racket behind-the-scenes about punishing the club. If you look at all of our achievements over the last few years, it’s easy for other club’s to be jealous of that.”

Hatton added: “What I would say about the owners is, they’ve invested millions into the local area and created loads of jobs and opportunities for so many local people. It’s not just the men’s team that has benefited, The City campus is like a little sports village with world-class youth and ladies facilities. There’s a college there. I think it’s incredible what they’ve put into the area and that benefits the entire city. If we’re found guilty, we’re found guilty. We’ll deserve to be punished and we’ll take the punishment. I find it hard to believe that the club have made over 100 mistakes, not with the way they run things there. We’ll find out soon enough.”

For now, City are doing their best to avoid off-field distractions. They have made an unbeaten start to the 2024-25 campaign – as they chase down a record-extending fifth successive domestic title – and expect to be made aware of any rulings in their protracted FFP saga before the end of the calendar year.