Premier League would be ‘ruining their own competition’ with 60-point Man City deduction as former Blues skipper reacts to delay in ‘stupid’ FFP saga

Allegations of supposed monetary mismanagement have been hanging over the Etihad Stadium since February 2023. An independent hearing into the accusations being levelled against City was completed late in 2024.

There has been no word regarding a verdict across 15 months, with everybody being left in the dark when it comes to the next course of action. Those in Manchester, who have maintained their innocence throughout, are understandably keen to clear an unwelcome distraction.

The latest musings when it comes to possible punishments have suggested that City could be stung with a 60-point penalty, which would send them tumbling down the Premier League table and into the relegation zone.

It appears unlikely that such drastic action would be taken with teams having only seven or eight games left to take in this season, with former Blues captain Dunne - who was speaking via Wiz Slots - telling GOAL when asked if any imminent rulings will be delayed: “It's been ridiculous already, the amount of time that it's dragged on. They've come to a conclusion a long time ago, so why it's taken so long to get around to giving out their results of what they found is stupid. 

“I mean, it just undermines the whole Premier League if they start coming out now at this stage of the season and you've got the opportunity of a real interesting title race over the next couple of months. So, they're ruining their own competition if they come out and start making decisions now. It's something that's best left until the summer and they can work out what they're going to do going forward rather than retrospectively.”

When it was put to him that any sanctions are likely to be applied heading into the 2026-27 campaign, with City having the right to appeal, Dunne went on to say: “That's the way it has to go now. 

“I can imagine for Manchester City it's been really undermining because it's just been dragging along with them. It's followed them around and for myself and for other ex-players, or anyone that's associated with the club, you do interviews and it's always about, ‘but what about this FFP thing?’. 

“Man City have got so much going for them in terms of they just won the Carabao Cup, they constantly produce really good players that play a really good style of football and everyone wants to just talk about the negative side of it. So, I think for the whole thing to get dealt with and to get finished, I think it's a relief for everybody from Man City. 

“I think it'll be a relief for the Premier League that they can finally come to a decision and put the whole thing to bed and let Man City be what they are and let them deal with whatever comes their way and get back to just focusing purely on the football.”

City have collected 61 Premier League points through 30 games this season, meaning that any deduction of the severity being discussed by some would drop them to the foot of the division and open up a trapdoor that leads into the Championship.

Pep Guardiola and Co have been conducting business as usual throughout a protracted saga, with more money being invested in the transfer market, and there appears to be confidence in the Etihad Stadium camp that the harshest of punishments will be avoided.