Man City guilty on 114 of 115 charges as appeal looms over title race
Manchester City have been found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges brought against them by the Premier League following the verdict of an Independent Regulatory Commission, and the club have now appealed that decision. While the sanctions are yet to be published, Arsenal find themselves waiting on the outcome just as closely as everyone else, with the Gunners sitting at the top of the table as the process drags on.
Some reports have suggested a points deduction is among the punishments City could face, though others have indicated fans and clubs may not get clarity on the full outcome until early next year. The appeal lodged by City means there is no quick resolution in sight.
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According to football.london, the saga is not expected to end there either. The Athletic have reported that Premier League clubs are planning legal action in response to the guilty verdict, with several teams said to have mobilised leading lawyers some time ago to determine whether there was any eligibility for claims.
Arsenal's growing gap
While the legal wrangling continues off the pitch, Arsenal's form has not let up. A win at Anfield has moved Mikel Arteta's side six points clear of Manchester City and opened up a nine point gap to Liverpool, the side many had tipped as City's closest challengers beyond Arsenal after just ten games.
Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola was reluctant to draw conclusions from the table when speaking ahead of his side's defeat to Arsenal last month. “Like I said before, it is still October,” he said. “We have to take one game at a time, and I always say the reference is more or less when we've played against each other once, so halfway through the season. That's when you can start to look at the standings. Right now, we are in a position where we need to improve and keep getting better.”
A season under scrutiny
With City's guilt confirmed on so many charges, questions linger over how the table might eventually look once sanctions are handed down, and whether City's name could end up anywhere outside the top of the division once they are applied. There is also a broader sense that, regardless of the outcome, this season risks being viewed with an asterisk by some observers.
Arsenal have already faced their share of reductive narratives this season, including suggestions that this has been one of the weaker Premier League campaigns in years or that Arteta's side are dull to watch. Those arguments have found little support from what has actually been produced on the pitch so far.
Whatever the eventual sanctions, the scale of the guilty verdict against City leaves the Premier League facing uncomfortable questions over almost two decades of results and finishes that this case now threatens to cloud. Arsenal, for now, continue simply to play the football in front of them while the legal process plays out above their heads.
