Gary Neville says rivals pushing for punishment for Man City are ENVIOUS
>
Gary Neville believes that Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal are pushing too hard for the Premier League to punish Manchester City because they are jealous of the reigning champions.
The governing body accused the city of committing multiple breaches of financial rules over a nine-year period on Monday and referred the case to an independent commission.
Highlighting problems with financial fair play within the English top flight, Neville also insisted that current regulations will always see the same football clubs ‘at the top’ of the pyramid, with smaller clubs unable to compete. with their income streams even when they are purchased. by extremely wealthy owners.
City’s charges relate to financial information on revenue, details of coach and player remuneration, UEFA regulations, profitability and sustainability and cooperation with the governing body’s ongoing investigations.
Allegedly committing financial breaches from September 2009 until the 2017-18 season, the reigning champions were able to launch themselves into the Premier League’s elite alongside Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal, who previously dominated the top four before Tottenham’s appearance. in the ‘big six’.
Gary Neville insisted that he is not a fan of the FFP regulations as they keep the same teams on top.
The Premier League accused Manchester City of breaking various financial rules on Monday
Since then, City have won multiple domestic trophies and established one of the most enviable teams in world football, led by the distinguished manager Pep Guardiola.
“There’s been a lot of respect for Manchester City over the last seven or eight years, in terms of what we’ve seen on the pitch,” Neville admitted.
“They are determined that they have done nothing wrong, and I feel like they don’t like the idea that the establishment doesn’t like what they’re doing.
“Clubs like Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, the great historical and traditional clubs, they don’t like this idea of the newcomer coming to the block and doing what they’re doing.
‘They can use it to their advantage as a siege mentality in the coming months. I’m a bit worried about what is happening within the club from a football perspective and how they are playing. Something is not quite right.
Perhaps surprisingly given his loyalty to Manchester United, Neville went on to say that he had sympathy for City.
‘Financially, I have some sympathy for Manchester City. If you look at what Jack Walker (former owner of Blackburn) did in 1992, 1993, 1994, that was financial doping, but it was considered to be a completely different thing because he was a local businessman who pumped money into his club.
‘I am not a fan of the Financial Fair Play Regulations. It means that you will always have the same clubs at the top, because their income is higher, and you will always have the lower clubs at the bottom, because they cannot compete with income.
The champions have been accused of breaking the rules more than 100 times in nine seasons.
City could lose their titles, lose points or face expulsion from the league
“We need sustainability and cost controls in football, and this is one of the most important decisions in the next 12 to 18 months.
“When I talk to Premier League owners what really worries them is that they are no longer taking on local businessmen. They are up against owners who have billions of pounds where money is not an object.
‘There has to be some level of control. Whether Manchester City are guilty or not, that will be resolved in the next six months, or however long it takes.”
Neville urged that regardless of trophy success and increased revenue, City will never be “bigger” than Manchester United in terms of power on a global scale.
He stated that if “true sustainability” were to be established in the Premier League, his former club would win the title every season due to the enormous amount of revenue it generates.
“If football was about true sustainability, Manchester United would probably always win the league. Their income is so high that they would have so much money to spend on players that it would be very unfair to the rest,” Neville added.
Neville suggested that the Glazer family, the owners of Manchester United, were envious of City.
Neville believes Erik ten Hag’s United would always win the league in a ‘truly sustainable’ model
‘We’ll never see Bournemouth, Brighton or Brentford, if you didn’t have owner funding in football.
“When Manchester City started to have higher sponsorship or commercial revenue than Manchester United, Real Madrid and Liverpool, people would have started to think something was wrong.
“City can never be as big a club as United on a global scale, when it comes to power. However, the city has higher revenues at this time. That’s something that’s kind of unbelievable, and they’re going to have to respond.
“The owners have to clear themselves because if they are found guilty, it will be a real problem for them, and it will be really damaging to their reputation.”
If found guilty, City could have heavy Premier League points deducted, be kicked out of the top flight or even stripped of their titles during the alleged period of offences.
Neville was speaking on The Overlap Live Fan Debate, in association with heaven bet.