Roy Keane without half words: “Manchester City cheated”

Roy Keane, Manchester United’s ‘live legend’, defended this Saturday in statements to the British television station ITV, that Manchester City must be exemplaryly punished after being found guilty of 114 of the 115 counts of violation of the Premier League’s financial regulations that it was being targeted.

On the eve, in the margin of the concentration of the main selection of Spain, Rodri Hernández (who, last summer, left Etihad Stadium to Barcelona) stressed that the titles won between 2009 and 2023 cannot be “withdrawn”, since “they were not paid with money, but with effort”, something that, in the opinion of the former Irish international, has no basis.

“It’s about time. This has obviously been dragging on for a long time. I would disagree with Rodri's message. It was the club's choice, they chose to cheat. Whatever they have earned, over the last few years, they deserve to be punished ", started by affirming the now sports commentator, 55 years old.

“It’s hard to define where we started and where we ended up, but they were cheating. They were found guilty of it, and now they have to take the medicine. It was a shock to have seen that they were found guilty of so many accusations,” he added. A position taken shared by his panelmate, Ian Wright.

“ They have to be punished for it. They may have been able to live those memories and all those great periods together, but when you look at the teams that are chasing them and that were doing things well, it is not fair,” pointed out the history of clubs such as Arsenal, Crystal Palace or West Ham.

“What have we learned from Liverpool, the legacy of [Jurgen] Klopp and that team? What could they have lived? They cheated to get there, and the other players did not have the opportunity to live what they lived ", completed the former English international, 62 years old.

Manchester City insists you're innocent

The reaction to the latest developments arose on Saturday, through a letter addressed by Manchester City President Khaldoon Al Mubarak to the fans themselves: “Many of you will have spent the night answering questions and messages from friends, family and colleagues. Me too. This is what I told my family: the Premier League process still has a long way to go, and our confidence and determination to prove the club’s innocence remains as strong as at the beginning.”.

“There are so many things I wish I could share with you to help you understand why we feel so confident in our position. But the strict confidentiality of the lawsuit and our determination to respect it mean that I cannot do so right now. Even this letter was subjected to several legal checks to ensure that it complies with the rules,” he continued.

“ I ask you to read carefully the statement below, which we released on Friday, and the statement we issued in February 2023 (also below). Every word is important and still true. Although some people rushed to draw their own conclusions and there was so much fuss around us, nothing has changed. We've faced challenges together in the past and come out victorious. There are still many who want to undermine the momentum of our club. We will not give them this opportunity”, continued the leader of the citizens ", completed.