- City hit with list of financial violations
- Relegation mentioned as potential punishment
- Guardiola laughed off lower-league rebuild.
WHAT HAPPENED? Guardiola was inevitably grilled about Man City's alleged financial violations at his first press conference since the club was charged with 101 breaches of Premier League rules. The manager brushed off the prospect of relegation, one of the rumoured punishments if City are found guilty. He referenced ex-players Paul Dickov and Mike Summerbee, who bother played for the club in the lower leagues, in a cheeky poke at the notion of City being sent down.
WHAT THEY SAID: "We will go to the low division, no problem. We have been there before. We will call back Paul Dickov, Mike Summerbee and make a good process," Guardiola said.
The ex-Barcelona coach also admitted that he thought outsiders assumed the club was guilty for the litany of charges brought before them earlier this week: "We are lucky we live in a society where everybody is innocent until proven guilty," Guardiola said. "We didn't have this opportunity. (People say) we are already guilty. I think we have good lawyers but the PL - supported by 19 teams - are going to take good lawyers too."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: City were hit with a lengthy list of charges for a range of financial violations earlier in the week, leading to claims that Guardiola might resign. However, he was defiant in a press conference on Friday, and vowed he would stay.
IN TWO PHOTOS:
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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR CITY? The investigation isn't expected to be completed overnight, with a panel likely to take months or even years to come to a verdict. Meanwhile, it appears Guardiola will stay at the helm.