PL charge City for alleged breaches of financial rules

They have been allowed to reach this point because the press will just print what they feel that their consumers want to read/hear and the idea of journalistic integrity fell by the wayside along time ago, it is similar to the trump situation in the states in that it doesnt matter what is said or printed in opposition to him, his supporters will decry and debunk it because they need to believe in him, this is what is happening here, it does not matter what is said or printed here (see martin samuel talking sense) because the red tops etc need to believe that we are guilty its fundamental to them that they are special because they have been told they are forever and a day and if they have not just been beaten but annihilated by a club that hasnt cheated but was just more inventive, better run, cleverer than them then it shows that anyone can do it so they arent special, their history means nothing and they are no better than anyone else so it has to be because we have cheated and so it doesnt matter what is said or printed as it will make no difference to them as they dont want to confront that reality.
This is spot on and didn't scruffy Jim say it may take 3-5 years to get seriously competing again.
The entitled cunts just can't take it.
 
Irrespective of political persuasion, most people would accept journos who write in The Spectator are itk. This week an article re God's own team appeared. The general tone was the good people of England would find a "City are innocent" outcome as unacceptable and even inconceivable. The article states the sensible action would be for City to "just" take a hit of 20 points (same magic number 20 apqears again) so that all concerned can move on and leave all this unpleasantness behind.
Very weird article. But could it be the journo was briefed that the charges are toast ? The PL are now trying to spin a bull shit story that a settlement is the ONLY solution to avoid a back lash ?. Another desperate attempt by the PL to force a bu115hit narrative, but we maintain our position, either prove your charges or drop them NO SETTLEMENT means NO SETTLEMENT.
 
Irrespective of political persuasion, most people would accept journos who write in The Spectator are itk. This week an article re God's own team appeared. The general tone was the good people of England would find a "City are innocent" outcome as unacceptable and even inconceivable. The article states the sensible action would be for City to "just" take a hit of 20 points (same magic number 20 apqears again) so that all concerned can move on and leave all this unpleasantness behind.
Very weird article. But could it be the journo was briefed that the charges are toast ? The PL are now trying to spin a bull shit story that a settlement is the ONLY solution to avoid a back lash ?. Another desperate attempt by the PL to force a bu115hit narrative, but we maintain our position, either prove your charges or drop them NO SETTLEMENT means NO SETTLEMENT.
The Spectator long ceased to be other than a Tory rag.
 
Irrespective of political persuasion, most people would accept journos who write in The Spectator are itk. This week an article re God's own team appeared. The general tone was the good people of England would find a "City are innocent" outcome as unacceptable and even inconceivable. The article states the sensible action would be for City to "just" take a hit of 20 points (same magic number 20 apqears again) so that all concerned can move on and leave all this unpleasantness behind.
Very weird article. But could it be the journo was briefed that the charges are toast ? The PL are now trying to spin a bull shit story that a settlement is the ONLY solution to avoid a back lash ?. Another desperate attempt by the PL to force a bu115hit narrative, but we maintain our position, either prove your charges or drop them NO SETTLEMENT means NO SETTLEMENT.
I read that article. Nothing but pure poison. They might be itk but they want us hung drawn and quartered.
 
This is basically true, regrettably. At the moment, the assumption is that we'll be guilty, which IMO disregards the absolutely plausible possibility that we could have acted within the scope of the regulations as applicable from time to time and nonetheless have achieved our objectives.

In general, I don't debate this stuff with people who can't tell me what at least one of the issues is that have given rise to some of these so-called charges. But in odd discussions I've had going back several years, I've encountered people who profess not to care whether we're strictly innocent. They think that, if we are, it's because we've exploited loopholes and we in any event breach the spirit of the law. Thus, we morally deserve punishment and they'll regard it as justified if it comes.

Frankly, the spirit of the law along with similar offshoots is a bullshit concept beloved only of legally illiterate clowns, and it counts for nothing in the real world. Argument relying on this risible notion will usually be backed up solely with assertions about us being owned by Abu Dhabi, who funnel money into the club through overvalued sponsorship. They can't cite evidence of that, but none is needed because, of course, everybody knows it's true.

I remember having a conversation a while back that went along exactly these lines. I happened to know that my interlocutor had recently benefitted from a significant tax break, so asserted to him that the spirit of the law dictated that he should stop being a tax-dodging **** and tip up the unpaid cash to the fiscal authorities. After all, it was evident that something was going on that wasn't right. For some reason, he thought I should have evidence before making such wild allegations against him, but he can tar City based exclusively on his own rank prejudice.

Unfortunately, I sense that this guy's view of City is quite widespread not only among other fans but within the game itself. This is the root of narratives concerning sportswashing, empty seats and the like. These paint us as a small club whose owners have a shady motive that can be fulfilled only through sharp practice. This, it's claimed, threatens the fabric of football as we know it and needs to be stopped as a matter of priority.

Whether or not City are successful in the ongoing challenge to the concept of associated parties, it's easy to see how the idea has become embedded that we urgently need to be stopped. Of course, there are direct rivals who are only too eager to saw us off at the knee and are willing to act in the utmost bad faith to achieve that, but they've also managed to create an atmosphere where a majority of PL clubs back measures that certainly push hard at the boundaries of competition law if they don't go beyond that.

I wouldn't estimate how tough this PR battle has been for MCFC. In its reporting of anything to do with our club's ownership and off-field activities, the British sports media is more one-sided than a fight would be between peak Mike Tyson and my works tea lady. And then there's the fact that ongoing investigations of our club have precluded any meaningful comment on the allegations against us apart from a simple denial.

It's to be hoped that the conclusion of the current PL case against the club will remove that barrier and allow us to put across our side of the story from a position of strength as the clear victors in the whole exercise. I tend to stick to my home turf when I post on BM and comment on legal rather than PR matters, but when I see the latter having this kind of effect on the former, it's hard for me not to opine that City need to undertake a major public relations effort at that stage.

And, while it's too late now, I also wonder how things have been allowed to reach this point. Notwithstanding the complexities I referred to in conveying our position to the wider public, could we really not have done better? We've completely failed to get our alternative version of events out there, and as a result have made life easy for our enemies, our detractors and their mendacious press cheerleaders.

More than a decade ago, someone very well connected in Abu Dhabi posted on BM. He once wrote that: "Khaldoon Al-Mubarak ... is ... [very] media savvy (courtesy of him having a a former Burson-Marsteller executive as his right-hand man)". I admire Khaldoon immensely and have tremendous respect for his performance in chairing MCFC's board since 2008, but I wish we'd seen a bit more of his and Pearce's "savvy" with regard to this particular matter.
Great post!
I have a little pub in Leicestershire that is popular with some of the staff and quite a few supporters of LCFC
Tonight after the England game a friend of mine - whose family business has had a big interest in Leicester city - came in for a pint.
(I say this is because he’s always been balanced and educated, and someone who’s opinion I’d trust).
After talking about how shit England were he bought up the Steve Cooper appointment and talked about who else they could’nt have got given the likely points deduction they are facing going into the new season.
I reasoned how ridiculous the PL rules are quoting Villa’s situation.
He immediately took me back and gave me the “people in glass houses” bollocks.
As I tried to explain that city might eventually be fighting Leicester’s corner he left and said he needed to pick up his takeaway.
I suppose it just took me back as to how guilty we are and probably always will be to people I thought had a little bit of football ownership knowledge'!
Oh well… fuck em!
 
Great post!
I have a little pub in Leicestershire that is popular with some of the staff and quite a few supporters of LCFC
Tonight after the England game a friend of mine - whose family business has had a big interest in Leicester city - came in for a pint.
(I say this is because he’s always been balanced and educated, and someone who’s opinion I’d trust).
After talking about how shit England were he bought up the Steve Cooper appointment and talked about who else they could’nt have got given the likely points deduction they are facing going into the new season.
I reasoned how ridiculous the PL rules are quoting Villa’s situation.
He immediately took me back and gave me the “people in glass houses” bollocks.
As I tried to explain that city might eventually be fighting Leicester’s corner he left and said he needed to pick up his takeaway.
I suppose it just took me back as to how guilty we are and probably always will be to people I thought had a little bit of football ownership knowledge'!
Oh well… fuck em!
Good man I will pop in your pub when I’m next over.
 
Aren’t the rags supplying evidence for the premier league in their case against us?
probably. Rags are sneaky like that but above all else only looking out for their own interests. They may agree with us on spending restrictions but still stab us in the back on ffp.
 
United - hung by their own petard I believe.

I posted an overview of Swiss Rambles analysis of uniteds likely PSR figures shortly after they were knocked out of the CL last year as it seemed almost certain they would fail without CL income. That is of course unless they can secure a large amount of income from somewhere which means either increased sponsorship money or sales of assets. Not sure they have any hotels to sell so i suspected at the time players would go.
They could always buy one and then sell it!
 

Can you clear something up for me? Maguire in his PoF podcast said this "they have raised some intriguing points in the 165 page document which I had to read overnight so, thank you very much to person X who sent it to me from our good friends in the media, ....".

But on the WNRH podcast he didn't mention he has seen it and I think you confirmed he said he hasn't seen the "claim". So he has either had a Goldbridge moment, the document distributed to the clubs wasn't a redacted copy of the claim as Lawton said in his article, or he has decided he said something he shouldn't have said on the PoF podcast?

Not really important, it's just bothering me :)
 

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