As for the podcast itself. So he referenced Colin(prestwichblue) as a whistleblower and Delooney as some respected world expert on football finance?... If you didn't know any better, you might mistake him for someone who knows what he's talking about. Those that do, can see it's all smoke and mirrors(and wishful thinking). Too many mistakes: "City said this" when they didn't. "This has to mean x" when it doesn't. Failing to see the point being made to him(or refusing to). I suppose that can happen in any debate, if we are fair but he does it so often, that I suspect it's deliberate.
Other than his own obsession with it, along with the fact that he wants people to read his article and pat him on the back. Why is he making out that his opinion on what the Etihad deal is/was worth, matters? That's the first argument I would have made. FMV/inflated sponsorship deals not being anything to do with any of UEFA's allegations and likely the PL's either, is perfectly valid too though. The debate was supposed to be about the case and too much time was wasted on something that there isn't an argument for, or UEFA and the PL would have definitely made it, way before now.
Nick was referencing the CAS report like he's some sort of expert on it(I don't remember reading the Etihad deal was adjusted 3 times at all, only once to £67m in 2012/13). I suspect, had Stefan have known he would veer off track on this so much, he'd have refreshed his memory on extracts like this to bring up:
Note that says, that is the range of valuations that
UEFA's own CFCB got back on those deals. Unless City were lying to CAS with this submission(which UEFA could have easily challenged in that case), then they didn't have to go off and find their own auditors contradicting UEFA's valuations, like PSG did. Etisalat was only slightly higher than the highest valuation, not enough to make a claim that 'they had to be related party'. Which City were adamant they were not.
I have tried to find UEFA's offiicial statements on the 2014 investigations for PSG and City and/or the charge sheets that resulted from them, to show the contrast but I can't find them anywhere. All I can find is the settlement agreements but you can tell by
the press reactions to the CFCB's decisions that came before them, they were different.
PSG failed FFP because their QTA deal was deemed inflated, otherwise they would have met the break even limit. City failed FFP simply because they didn't meet the break even limit on the balance sheet. Which City argued, was down to the wage exemption clause, that was altered by UEFA, after they had already accounted for it on their balance sheet.
As for Nick's armchair valuations. I haven't read his article yet but I suspect he's pointing at different clubs, under different circumstances(date signed, length, current position, future projections), with less facets to their deals(shirts, stadium, training campus etc), in different leagues that don't have the same value. I did a comparison myself and came to a different conclusion to him ages ago, so I won't repeat myself.
Here's a link to that post in the media thread instead.
I also suspect Arsenal's 2004 deal("£5m" he muttered) is being heavily relied on. Stefan was right to point out Arsenal signed themselves up to a lengthy stadium naming rights agreement(15 years is a long time) which quickly became undervalued(if it wasn't already). That likely happened(negotiated late 2003-early 2004? vs 2011) before the funding was secured(announced Feb 2004) via hefty bank loans, so that they could start building it. If Wenger agreeing to stay, has been cited as a
stipulation from the banks, before approving those loans. How would securing a long term sponsor, not also be a concern for the banks too? They were clearly eager to get the funds secured, to begin building ASAP. So there's your reason they ended up selling themselves short. Do not blame other clubs' bad business sense on City or it's ownership. As our Chairman once said(ish).
Nick's just wasting his time trying to make anything of it. The auditors UEFA used, are probably same ones the PL would turn to, if they had any concerns about FMV and we already know what they thought. Is FMV even a thing anymore in PSR?