Guardiola Stands by Manchester City Amid Guilty Verdict

Pep Guardiola, the former manager of Manchester City, publicly reaffirmed his loyalty to the club following its guilty verdict from an independent commission regarding serious breaches of Premier League financial rules. The commission found that Manchester City had engaged in practices that included arranging “sham” contracts and misrepresenting financial agreements, which resulted in an artificial inflation of revenues and a reduction of costs exceeding £900 million during the 2009/10 to 2017/18 seasons.

Additionally, the club was found to have filed misstated accounts and concealed financial information from auditors. The commission upheld three out of four alleged breaches related to the club's cooperation with the investigation, concluding that City attempted to obstruct the inquiry.

Manchester City has strongly rejected the findings, describing itself as “disappointed and surprised” and asserting its innocence, while indicating plans to appeal the decision. Chief executive Ferran Soriano referred to the Premier League's case as a “Premier League conspiracy theory” and stated that the club has substantial evidence to support its position.