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Canadian men’s soccer coach Jesse Marsch has called for Manchester City to be severely punished for breaching the Premier League’s financial rules, saying his managerial experience against the club has convinced him there are inconsistencies in his work.
City were found guilty of serious breaches of Premier League financial rules over nine seasons from 2009-10 to 2017-18, with the league alleging the club used “fraudulent” commercial deals to boost revenues and keep costs below £900 million ($1.19 billion).
The club denied wrongdoing, saying the ruling contained serious errors of law, principle and fact, and filed an appeal against the independent commission’s decision on Thursday.
Marsh, who will manage Leeds United from 2022 to 2023, said the difference between the clubs was clear to him during his time in England.
“I think Man City should be severely punished. I think they should be relegated and by the way everybody knew about it. Everybody knew,” Marsh told the Guardian in an interview published on Sunday.
Marsh also hinted at the 2022 summer transfer window, when Leeds sold Raphinha to Barcelona and Calvin Phillips to City, with both clubs claiming cash.
“That summer (2022), we and Man City were the only teams that said we made money. We made money for us because we sold Raphinha, we sold Calvin Phillips. We have more than what we bought,” he said.
“At that time we were not in a position to save money. We didn’t have deep pockets. But when Man City said that, I was like, ‘Are you kidding me?’ Is this some kind of joke?”
The American coach also doubted City’s transfer of Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund that summer.
“When they said they’d bought Erling Haaland for £52m, it was like, ‘Yeah, okay, of course!’ So I knew there were inconsistencies in this, but what can you do? You just put your arms in the air and say, ‘This is football,’” Marsch said.
“Reuters” contacted “Manchester City” to comment on Marsh’s words.
The city’s appeal will be heard individually by a three-person independent board.
Potential sanctions include fines, points deductions and other sporting penalties, with relegation or the stripping of titles being discussed as possible consequences. It is unclear whether any sanctions will be imposed before the appeal is decided.