UEFA are ready to re-open their probe into Manchester City in light of explosive information revealed by hackers this month.
City were sanctioned in 2014 for breaching UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules but if it is shown that the club ‘abused’ the investigation, European football’s governing body will act.
A series of stories based on emails taken from the club and released in German magazine Der Spiegel suggested the scale of City’s attempts to get round the rules went well beyond what UEFA was aware of at the time.
UEFA are ready to re-open their probe into Manchester City in light of explosive information
The allegations claim City hid vast amounts from auditors via a variety of accounting tricks in a bid to comply with the regulations in what has been described as ‘a web of lies’.
On Monday night, commenting for the first time on the issue, UEFA suggested they may investigate City again.
In a statement, a UEFA spokesman said: ‘Should new information suggest that previously concluded cases have been abused, those cases may be capable of being re-opened as determined on a case-by-case basis’.
They added that UEFA would also ‘seek explanation, clarification or rebuttal’ from a club should any information impact on ongoing assessments of their financial position.
Footballing body UEFA will act if it is shown that the club ‘abused’ the investigation
As revealed by Sportsmail, officials at UEFA were shocked by the allegations of wide-ranging financial chicanery at City, seemingly uncovered by Der Spiegel.
Potential punishments, including a Champions League ban, are open to UEFA, should they decide to act.
Among the allegations was a claim that City’s owner, Sheik Mansour, was paying the vast majority of a number of sponsorship deals himself. It was also claimed he paid a third company to take on the player marketing rights in a move which took tens of millions off City’s published outgoings to ensure they complied with FFP.
Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola could face an FA charge and subsequent fine for talking about referee Anthony Taylor in the build-up to the Manchester derby.
The Manchester City manager mentioned Taylor, who hails from Wythenshawe, during a pre-match press conference ahead of the 3-1 win over Manchester United.
Pep Guardiola could also soon face a fine for his comments about referee Anthony Taylor
Managers are told not to speak about match officials before games but Guardiola said: ‘If he is a fan of United or City — everyone can be a fan of whoever he wants. So no problem. He is going to try to do the best job.
‘Mr Taylor is from Manchester, but do people know the team he supports? Altrincham. So no problem. Hopefully he can make good decisions for both sides and it will be a good game.’
The FA are seeking Guardiola’s observations about the matter and he has until 6pm on Thursday to respond.
Jose Mourinho was fined £50,000 for misconduct following comments made about Taylor before United’s goalless draw against Liverpool at Anfield in October 2016.
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