Uefa is cracking down: Manchester City and ex-Bayern coach Pep Guardiola are excluded from the Champions League for violations of financial fair play. And not only that.
- Hammer penalty against the English champions Manchester City .
- Ex-Bayern coach Pep Guardiola's club is excluded from the Champions League .
- The reasons given are serious violations of financial fair play .
February 15 update, 6:28 a.m .: Manchester City wants to take action against the imposed UEFA ban . According to Sky information, the club could not stand alone. Other top teams suffering from the Financial Fair Play rule have been preparing such a court case for years. They only waited for such a moment. The broadcaster names Paris Saint Germain and speaks of the fact that the UEFA ruling could trigger an "earthquake". Accordingly, the regulation violates applicable European competition law. Is there now a giga trial in which the top clubs in Europe act together against UEFA?
Update from February 14, 9:50 p.m .: Manchester City has already reacted to Uefa's punishment - and wants "to initiate proceedings before the sports arbitration court as soon as possible".
The Premier League club announced this Friday evening on its website and via social media. " Manchester City is disappointed, but not surprised by Uefa's announcement today," the statement said.
Champions League exclusion? Manchester City wants to take action
ManCity further complained about an allegedly "faulty and leaked UEFA process" by the chief investigator, who would have submitted "sanctions" to the club in December 2018, "before the investigation even started".
A long legal process is likely to be expected to clarify whether the English champions can and should really be excluded from the Champions League .
CLUB STATEMENThttps: //t.co/ueMFeLFowu
- Manchester City (@ManCity) February 14, 2020First report from February 14th, 8 p.m .: What a setback for Pep Guardiola : after his time in Munich (2013 - 2016), the Catalan started at Manchester City to win the Champions League with the English club.
But now the mega hammer! The current Premier League champion will be eliminated from the premier class over the next two years for serious violations of financial fair play . The European Football Association (Uefa) announced on Friday.
Manchester City: banished from Champions League, huge fine
And not only that: According to this, the Citizens have to pay another 30 million euros fine. Financial fair play provides (simplified) that clubs do not spend more than they earn on the transfer market within three years. Majority shareholders, investors and / or patrons may “only” compensate for a difference of up to 30 million euros during this time.
Manchester City coach: Pep Guardiola.
© dpa / Ina Fassbender
Only this season Manchester City has a negative transfer balance of 98 million euros.
The English champions of 2018 and 2019 were unable to close this huge gap in the winter transfer phase - for example by transferring from Leroy Sané to FC Bayern Munich .
Pep Guardiola: never a Champions League win with ManCity?
Guardiola , whose contract expires in Manchester in 2021, now has only one attempt to make the dream of the first Champions League title of the sky blue come true.
But in the second round of this season ManCity meets Real Madrid (February 26 / March 17), Guardiola's great rival from his time in Spain. The 49-year-old Catalan won the premier class twice as a coach with his home club FC Barcelona (2009, 2011).
UEFA penalty against Manchester City increases probability of Sané transfer
With Bayern he moved to the semi-finals three times in a row. Media in Spain that are close to Real Madrid keep telling the former Bundesliga coach that he would just burn the money in the Premier League .
Owner of Manchester City: Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan (Wed.).
© picture allia nce / dpa / Robin Parker
The sheikh Mansour's subsidized club from the United Arab Emirates has now apparently paid for itself.
Maybe with consequences for the German record champions. The sales pressure at ManCity increases with this judgment, of course - which makes a change from Sané to Bayern even more likely.
Rubric list image: © dpa / Darren Staples