Manchester City reportedly plan to continue with their summer transfer activity as normal, despite being charged with over 100 financial breaches by the Premier League.
On Monday morning, the Premier League dropped the bombshell announcement that Pep Guardiola's side were being charged with a series of alleged offences from between 2009 and 2018.
City have been accused of breaching rules relating to revenue, sponsorship deals and operating costs, as well as ignoring UEFA's Financial Fair Play regulations and breaking the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability rules.
Furthermore, the club allegedly paid former manager Roberto Mancini extra money through a secret contract and failed to assist with Premier League investigations, and the findings have been passed onto an independent commission.
While the matter could take a number of years to wrap up, City could face unprecedented sanctions if found guilty, namely transfer bans, points deductions or relegation from the top flight.
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The Citizens have denied any wrongdoing, though, and The Athletic claims that the Premier League champions will carry on their transfer and contract activity as normal for the time being.
The report adds that club chiefs continued to discuss plans for the summer window even after learning of the charges, and they adopted a similar stance in 2020 after being found guilty of breaching UEFA FFP rules.
Man City were banned from the Champions League for two seasons and fined £25m that year, but that continental suspension was overturned following an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
However, City cannot appeal their case to CAS this time, and they will find it difficult to convince players to move to the Etihad while the recent allegations are hanging over their heads.
City are one of several teams expected to be pursuing a deal for Borussia Dortmund's Jude Bellingham, who has also been linked with the likes of Real Madrid, Chelsea and Liverpool.
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However, Real Madrid supposedly believe that Bellingham will end up in the Premier League, and Liverpool's chances of a deal may be scuppered if they fail to qualify for Europe this year.
In a statement released a couple of hours following the charges being announced, Man City expressed 'surprise' at the Premier League's allegations given their supposed "irrefutable evidence" in support of their position.
"Manchester City FC is surprised by the issuing of these alleged breaches of the Premier League Rules, particularly given the extensive engagement and vast amount of detailed materials that the EPL has been provided with," the statement read.
"The club welcomes the review of this matter by an independent Commission, to impartially consider the comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence that exists in support of its position. As such we look forward to this matter being put to rest once and for all."
Man City sit second in the Premier League table after 21 matches in the 2022-23 season - five points adrift of leaders Arsenal, who have a game in hand on the champions.
Ben Knapton
