Man City 'learned guilty verdict' BEFORE £440m summer transfer spending spree

Manchester City were alerted to their guilty verdict regarding 114 breaches of the Premier League's financial rules before a summer of big spending, it is claimed. The Cityzens have been found guilty of all but one of the 115 charges they were slapped with in 2023, with the news breaking on Friday afternoon.

However, as per ESPN, sources say that City learned their fate months ago. The publication has been told that executives at City were initially made aware of the independent panel's verdict back in July, with the club still investing massively in their first-team afterwards.

In total, seven senior signings arrived at the Etihad Stadium, totalling a staggering £450million, following the verdict - if the sources' claims ring true. City broke their own club transfer record twice having signed Nottingham Forest's Elliot Anderson for £116m in late July, and Enzo Fernandez from Chelsea for £125m on September 1.

Add to that the acquisitions of Iliman Ndiaye from Everton for £65m, Ayyoub Bouaddi from Lille for £86m, Allan from Palmeiras for £34m, Jeremy Monga from Leicester City for £12.5m and Geronimo Rulli from Marseille for around £1.7m, and you have the £440m City spent allegedly after learning their reported guilty verdict.

City declined to comment when they were approached by the publication on Tuesday, while the Premier League noted on Friday that it would not be commenting on matters due to the "private and confidential" nature of the progress. It comes as City are expected to appeal Friday's reported verdict.

The club have maintained their innocence throughout the entirety of the saga, with chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, sharing a letter with fans on Saturday. In said letter, Al Mubarak thanked city followers for their continued support, and insisted that the club will continue to fight.

It means that Premier League fans may have to wait to see what punishment officials will slap City with, considering the league will not to do until the entire process comes to a close. Ferran Soriano, has seemingly suggested that it could be another lenghty wait.

FOLLOW OUR MAN CITY FB PAGE! Follow our Manchester City Mirror Football Facebook page

The City CEO attended a meeting in Copenhagen alongside Premier League officials this week, where he is believed to have said: "It has taken eight years to reach this point and it will still take much more time."

Soriano also dodged questions from the media in the aftermath. A number of potential penalties have been floated around since the reported guilty verdict landed; among those, fines and transfer embargoes.

However, more extreme punishments could see City stripped of their titles achieved between 2009 and 2018 - the period when the alleged infractions are thought to have taken place - as well as relegation from the Premier League or substantial points deductions.

Whether any of those punishments come to fruition remains to be seen, but one thing is certain; nothing will be set in stone until the result of City's appeal comes back.