Former Manchester United boss Roy Keane said he would throw his “medals in the bin” if he were a Manchester City player after the club was convicted of all charges related to breaches of Premier League financial rules.
On Tuesday, the Premier League confirmed that the Etihad club had been convicted of violating its rules over the nine years between 2009 and 2018 by creating contracts with commercial partners to secretly funnel more than 830m into its football operations.
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City, who continue to deny any wrongdoing, won eight trophies, three Premier League titles, during that time.
Keane said the achievements of the City players were redundant because of the “mistake” that occurred at the time.
“If I was a player, I’d 100% stick those medals in the bin. You’d be cheating, of course,” Keane told ITV Sport ahead of England’s match against the Czech Republic.
“They beat him on the pitch, because he is being cheated.”
And the club added: “They knew they were doing a lot of harm, but they did it anyway.”
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But Keane’s former United team-mate Wayne Rooney says his former club don’t deserve to be rewarded with League titles if their city rivals are robbed on penalties.
Sanction, however, and appeal to the city council against the decree.
It could be a penalty, stripping the club of top-flight titles. They have won eight times since Sheikh Mansour’s takeover in 2009, three of which were at the time when they were accused of breaking financial rules.
Rooney was part of the United States of America’s best runners up to City in 2011-2012 but does not want the title to be considered retrospective.
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Speaking on the United podcast about Wood, he said: “I wouldn’t feel comfortable about receiving another Premier League medal, if I’m honest, because I don’t think we deserve it. We haven’t done enough of that to win leagues.
“I think as players, they are there doing everything they can to win the Premier League title and in their minds they have done it.
“And, if the players didn’t understand what was going on above them, if that happened to me – if all of a sudden Juventus did the same, and I got up and had my Premier League medals taken from me – I would be absolutely devastated.
“They could have taken them away, but we don’t want to, because we don’t feel the team deserved it that year, because we obviously didn’t finish first.”
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‘I think we will be welcomed back into the city’
Rooney’s former team-mates Rio Ferdinando and David de Gea were both blasted on social media after news of the guilty verdict emerged on Friday, suggesting the title win was retrospectively awarded.
And former Stoke City boss Tony Pulis said he felt “let down” after his side were beaten by the Blues in the 2011 FA Cup final.
“When I heard from teammates and people saying, ‘We won another medal,’ I’m happy when I won five,” Rooney said.
“I don’t want this one just sitting there… 15 years later or whatever your medal was, because the city came around. I don’t want comfort.
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“The question is, do I want to get that medal for finishing second?
“Some players could. I just don’t feel comfortable for receiving a Premier League medal for finishing second.”
While Rooney is against the titles lifted by City, he believes they should be relegated.
“I think they’ll see us back in the city,” said the 40-year-old. “I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I think we’re going to see them relegated.”
Rooney added: “They can now go into the finals of the league and then impose restrictions on how much money they can spend over the next three or four seasons.
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“If you’re just putting them in the Championship, and I’m going to take a huge penalty, you’re going to come back. Where, I feel if the restrictions… League Two, whatever… that could be very difficult for them.
“Like, if they got a 20-point deduction in the last three years, then the players didn’t want to stay there. If the championship is for a season, you could talk the players around.
“I’m as big as I really can be.”
‘Time of disappointment’ – Pochettino de Mon
Former Tottenham and Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino meanwhile says “we have lived through a period of disappointment”.
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Pochettino has managed three clubs in the Premier League during his tenure covering City, with the 54-year-old spending 15 months at Southampton, five years at Tottenham and one season with Chelsea.
“Whatever punishment [they choose]Pochettino said he could return the season.
“A lot of damage was done. Many clubs followed the rules and some did not.
“Maybe they thought it was a punishment [wouldn’t come for a lot of years] – what are they going to do? Financial penalty? Docking points? Of course it is difficult.
“It is a great sadness. We have come to a situation where what was celebrated was not true, that good may not have seemed so good, that good may not have been good, but what happened could not be good.
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“We went through something where there was no fair play. How do you repair everything because of those mistakes, if the truth is that all the rules of 114 were broken, we lived through a period of deception.”
Earlier this month, Pochettino said Chelsea had been robbed of the 2016-17 Premier League title after being convicted of a historic rule breaker and should “be awarded” to his Tottenham side, who finished runners-up.
Sources have told BBC Sport that other top flight clubs are seeking legal advice on possible compensation following a ruling against City.
City were charged by the Premier League in February 2023 after a four-year investigation.
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The club reported to an independent commission. The hearing behind closed doors began in September 2024 and ran for about 12 weeks.
“Where were the powers?” said Pochettino in the City. “This is what gets my attention. Where were the powers?
“If I remember being at Southampton, then Tottenham – I remember building.” [the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium] not having the financial possibility of transfer for 18 months.
“I think we are the only team in the history of the Premier League with 18 months without.” [making a transfer].
“Tottenham was fighting for titles with those above us and every year in the top four, getting to the semi-finals of the Champions League without a transfer for 18 months, all because we needed to get used to it. [Premier League financial controls]?
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“They were so strict with us, but also so lenient with others. Because of this, that’s why I say: the whole thing is strange.”
La Liga president Javier Tebas said he agreed with Pochettino’s decision and added: “In my opinion, the most serious sanction is provided to be used according to the rules of the Premier League.
“Given the number of years, the repeated disruption, denial and lack of cooperation, the most serious sanction has been granted under the Premier League rules, although I don’t know exactly what that sanction was,” Tebas, 64, told BBC Sport at a summit in London by global union Fifpro.
The Spaniard added that he had taken care of urban affairs for many years.
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