Man City FFP: Expert ‘hearing both sides win’; APT ‘decision’ imminent amid Newcastle ‘implications’

A former Premier League chairman has responded to a report claiming Manchester City ‘scored victory’ in their APT hearing as a ‘full decision’ is imminent.

Man City are accused of breaching over 100 of the Premier League’s financial fair play rules. They were charged at the start of 2023 as this followed a four-year probe into their conduct between 2009 and 2018.

If they are found guilty, they could be given a huge fine, points deduction, transfer ban or expulsion from the Premier League.

Pep Guardiola’ s side have insisted on their innocence and they fought back against the Premier League earlier this year. This came as they launched an unprecedented legal battle as they campaigned for the removal of Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules.

This hearing has also finished, while their FFP case got underway earlier this week. A report on Thursday from The Daily Mail’ s Mike Keegan claimed Man City ‘appear to have scored a victory over the Premier League on associated party transactions (APT)’.

READ: Man City stars reassigned after FFP ‘expulsion’: Foden to Chelsea as Arsenal land centre-back

Keegan wrote on X: ‘MAJOR BREAKING: Manchester City appear to have scored a victory over the Premier League on APTs after a vote to amend rules was pulled at the last-minute from this morning’s clubs meeting.

‘Could well indicate City have been successful in their legal challenge (eg: no point amending rules that may soon be changed/removed). Potentially huge development. Story @MailSport shortly.’

A report from Football Insider claims Man City’s ‘two-week private arbitration APT hearing took place in June and a full decision is now expected to be delivered by the end of September’, while their FFP case is ‘expected to go on for around ten weeks’.

Responding to The Daily Mail ‘s story, former Everton chairman Keith Wyness is “hearing both sides are going to win points” and the verdict ‘could also have implications for Saudi-backed Newcastle’.

“This is a straightforward measurement exercise about the value of sponsorships,” Wyness said in an interview with Football Insider.

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“At the moment, you can’t sell your shirt sponsorship for £1billion to an associated party.

“It’s about finding reasonable value and trying to work out if the deal is fair market value. It’s establishing those kind of benchmarks and making sure the rules aren’t bent.

“From what I’m hearing, both sides are going to win points on this. The clubs themselves, once the verdict is announced, will have to decide how things change.

“This is completely different from the 115 charges. A lot of critics say these rules were set to try and stop the Saudis from overspending at Newcastle.

“Some say it was to stop clubs breaking into the big six. There’s a lot of criticism, but let’s see what comes out.”