Man City guilty: FA deliver “significant” response to 114 charges verdict as statement released

The Football Association have broken their silence on Manchester City’s guilty verdict regarding 114 breaches of the Premier League's financial rules.

Earlier this week, the Premier League confirmed that Man City have been found guilty of all charges relating to serious breaches of the league’s financial rules and the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the investigation.

The Citizens have been accused of arranging "sham" contracts with several commercial partners to disguise secret funding of more than £830m and artificially inflate revenues between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons.

The Premier League CEO, Richard Masters, has said that the findings show that Man City "systematically broke Premier League rules for nearly a decade."

Man City, however, have repeatedly pleaded their innocence and have said that the case was supported by a "comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence".

The eight-time Premier League champions have until Friday (today) to lodge an appeal which they are expected to press ahead with.

Multiple reports claim that in their appeal, Man City will claim that key sponsorship deals were funded by the Abu Dhabi government, rather than the club's owners.

Man City's guilty verdict "has significant implications for the integrity of the game"

In response to both the Premier League’s findings and Man City’s plead of innocence, the FA have issued their first statement on the matter, confirming they has the power to take disciplinary action against the Citizens and key individuals.

The FA also says that the decision made by the three-person independent commission “has significant implications for the integrity of the game."

“We are carefully considering the decision and its implications and will take action where appropriate,” the statement added.

“As proceedings between the Premier League and Manchester City Football Club remain ongoing, we do not intend to comment further at this stage. We will, however, continue to monitor developments closely.”

How could Man City be sanctioned if guilty verdict is upheld?

It still remains to be seen exactly what sanctions Man City will face should their guilty verdict be upheld after an appeal.

Huge fines, transfer bans, points deductions leading to relegation, stripping of titles, expulsion and the removal of Man City’s Abu Dhabi-based owners – led by Sheikh Mansour – have all been mooted as potential punishments.

While former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher is in favour of stripping Man City of their titles, fellow pundit and ex-Manchester United defender Gary Neville has called for Man City’s owners to be removed.

However, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said that he would be “really concerned to lose” Man City’s owners because they have been “such a huge partner in the building of modern Manchester”.