Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola can expect to be quizzed on the Premier League charges levied against the club on a regular basis.
For all the impact Monday’s shocking news could have on Manchester City, very little should have changed for Pep Guardiola.
The prospect of the Blues being kicked out of the Premier League raised new questions about the manager’s future, but if he wasn’t jumping for joy in pictures from Tuesday’s training session, it could be attributed to the ongoing battle to breathe new life into the squad that has won the last two titles. Away from the boardroom drama, the coach has more pressing concerns right now.
Guardiola has been in this position before and has defended the club wholeheartedly because he believes what he has been shown and told by his superiors. As he stated in relation to”If you lie to me, the day after I am not here,” he said of the UEFA ruling that was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
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That faith was justified at the time, and given the similar nature of the charges, there is unlikely to be a slew of evidence that was not made available to Guardiola at the time that is particularly relevant now. It will take an unfavorable commission decision – which may not even be issued by the time the manager’s contract expires in 2025 – for him to feel lied to.
The other point is that Guardiola has been aware of what is being said about City for much longer. The allegations about their finances were made freely around Munich when he was managing Bayern, so hearing it from someone else – even if they are as important in the game as the Premier League – will not change minds because he has already been working under the impression that their achievements have not been fully recognized by all.
Already, online reaction has been divided into two camps: those who never fully accepted the CAS verdict now assume City guilt, and those who did accept it know it is better to wait than to assume – especially with so little information on the charges available and given financial regulations are not a topic many would choose to discuss on Mastermind.
Guardiola is in the latter camp, but he cannot wait for an opinion when he will be grilled on the subject in press conferences for months. The manager will have to answer questions about his involvement in serious Premier League matches, not because he is a specialist in it, but because he is the only club representative put up to face the media.
Not only are there allegations, but there is also wider activity and implications for the club.
Some City fans are concerned that Guardiola will not resign this week, but that he will grow tired of the constant cloud over the Blues. If proven, these allegations are extremely damaging to the club, though the word ‘if’ does a lot of work in that phrase, and in the not-insignificant time before we find out, most will assume they are guilty until proven innocent (or not guilty)
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