Carragher dismisses ‘Red Cartel’, revenue ‘nonsense’ as Man City ‘don’t move the needle’

Jamie Carragher has dismissed Manchester City’s revenue claims and their belief that the Premier League favours the ‘Red Cartel’ over them as ‘nonsense’.

City are currently on trial over 115 alleged breaches of financial fair play, with a verdict set to be reached by an independent commission before the end of the year.

The charges were brought against City in February 2023 and they could face a severe points deduction or even expulsion from the Premier League if found guilty.

Carragher thinks such significant sanctions are unlikely though because of the legal team City have facing off against the Premier League, and rubbished the ‘nonsense’ claims being made by the Citizens, including their assertion that Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United are favoured members of a ‘Red Cartel’.

Asked about the outcome of the trial, Carragher told GOAL : “You know what? I’m not sure it ever gets resolved. Because I think in some ways, no matter what happens, if City are found to be proven not guilty, I think most people in the country, certainly fans of rival teams will all believe they have done it – it’s just that they’ve got the best lawyers. So it’ll never go away.

“And if they are found guilty, City will come out and say, ‘It was persecution from the Premier League – United, Liverpool and Arsenal don’t want the new kids in town coming and taking their trophies,’ or, ‘that’s the world we live in.’

“I’m just tired and bored of it, if I’m being honest. Some of the things City claim… sometimes I just can’t believe… when they claim that they bring in more revenue than anybody else, like Real Madrid, and teams like that, I’m like, ‘behave.’

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“I know that myself in the media, if I do a newspaper article on Liverpool or Man United, the amount of clicks is going to get compared to City because people aren’t as interested in Manchester City. That’s not a criticism, that’s just a fact. We know that from viewing figures on Sky Sports. If Man United or Liverpool play they go through the roof. If Manchester City, it doesn’t move the needle. And again, it’s not a criticism, it’s just a fact.

“We know those things. They’re facts. So for City to say that they bring in more revenue than some of the biggest clubs in the Premier League or Real Madrid is just a nonsense.

“But we want it over. We want to be talking about football on the pitch. Manchester City, they’ve got an unbelievable manager, an unbelievable team. We want to get back to judging them as a football team on the pitch, but if they broke the rules that they signed up for as every other Premier League club did, they should be punished, and punished very, very heavily.”