New date deemed ‘most realistic scenario’ on Manchester City’s 115 charges verdict | OneFootball

A new report has hinted at the ‘most realistic scenario’ for a verdict to emerge concerning Manchester City’s 115 charges issued by the Premier League in 2022.

Many had expected some sort of development to emerge over the last international break during March, with City boss Pep Guardiola offering a light-hearted response when quizzed on the lack of news upon his own return to media duties.

Speaking to reporters shortly after the latest national team commitments of his players, “We are more than one year with that, so nothing changes if we have one more week, two more weeks, or three more weeks… or four more weeks.”

In the opening weeks of April, a follow-up report then claimed that no ‘hard-and-fast deadline’ was ever set on a verdict, and given the number of charges, complexities, amount of evidence heard and challenged, and scrutiny, the time taken was not seen as a surprise in legal circles.

Now, further developments have emerged concerning the case with various points regarding the date and timing of a verdict being released by a new report, including the possibility of a final outcome still being “another couple of years” away.

According to the iPaper’s Mark Douglas, many at Manchester City are ‘irritated’ at the cloud hanging over the club concerning the 115 charges from the Premier League, with the prospect of an imminent conclusion deemed “unrealistic” by sources.

Several sources are said to have claimed the possibility of a conclusion at the start of summer “at the earliest” is the more realistic scenario, while legal experts have stated the amount of material to sift through and what is at stake means a lengthy wait was “always more likely”.

The potential for appeals to follow the initial verdict could also mean that the case could drag on for “another couple of years”, the report claims, while those inside the game are said to believe “only a handful of people” have any idea of when clarity will be offered.

One unnamed executive within the report has also described the ongoing situation as a “waiting game”, while there is also a feeling among some that it is ‘deeply unsatisfactory’ that yet another season will end without clarity.

Manchester City are continuing as normal when it comes to the running of the club, with Hugo Viana alongside his recruitment colleagues operating with intent as the summer transfer window approaches following the conclusion of the season.

The four-in-a-row Premier League champions are expected to spend heavily in the market as they look to get Pep Guardiola’s playing squad back up to its competitive best following a largely underwhelming campaign.

Among the names being explored with a top-level price tag mooted in various quarters are Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz, as well as Nottingham Forest and England international Morgan Gibbs-White.