Not many head coaches would volunteer for what Andoni Iraola walked into at Anfield in June. Jamie Carragher wrote this week that Iraola had asked for a two-year contract, a self-imposed clock on a manager whose club is now expected to collect what Manchester City have been found to have won while breaking the Premier League’s financial rules.
Carragher argued that Liverpool have the strongest grievance of any club. He pointed to the 2013/14 title Manuel Pellegrini’s City lifted by two points, and the 2016 League Cup final Liverpool lost to City on penalties early in Jurgen Klopp’s tenure. According to the Liverpool Echo, relief, rather than anger or joy, has been the overriding emotion inside the club since the verdict landed, with officials noting that the only genuine surprise was how robust the Premier League’s language turned out to be in the published 40-page core decision.
On 29 September, an independent commission ruled that Manchester City had systematically broken Premier League rules for nearly a decade, finding the club had used “sham” sponsorship contracts to artificially inflate revenues and reduce costs by more than £900m across the 2009/10 to 2017/18 seasons. Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said the core decision “details how the club systematically broke Premier League Rules for nearly a decade.” City’s chief executive Ferran Soriano responded that “the whole Premier League case is based on a single false accusation.”
Liverpool have written to City
Liverpool have already moved on the civil front, writing to Manchester City to give notice of their intention to claim damages. Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham formally reserved the same right in September 2024, pre-empting the six-year statute of limitations that would otherwise have run from Der Spiegel’s original publication.
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Carragher wants that queue to get longer, and faster.
“Now that we know that they’re guilty, yes, there’s an appeal, but now that they’ve got a big guilty verdict initially, now I don’t think anybody wants to wait,” he said.
“It has to be done this season, because Man City need to be affected for next season.”
Carrick already sits 12th after five games
Mikel Arteta, who signed a contract extension to 2030 and became the Premier League’s longest-serving manager after Guardiola stepped away in the summer, is the one rival boss going into this autumn with a defending champion’s standing. Chelsea’s Xabi Alonso, in his first season under BlueCo, has four years on his deal and a squad being judged against the title. At Old Trafford, Michael Carrick is managing a Manchester United side sitting 12th after five Premier League games, with one win.
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Appeal expected before Christmas
Manchester City lodged a comprehensive appeal by the 2 October deadline, with the club maintaining it is “innocent of the accusations made by the Premier League.” A separate hearing will set the sanction, which under Premier League rules can range from a fine or points deduction up to expulsion. According to Sky Sports, rival clubs do not expect City to be in the Premier League next season if the appeal fails, with several arguing a one-season demotion would not reflect nine years of breaches.
The appeal is expected to be heard before Christmas, and any damages claims from rival clubs will have to wait on its outcome.
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