If I remember correctly the PL's rules - now known as Profitability and Sustainability Regulations - were proposed by Manchester United and only accepted because already relegated Reading chose to abstain. The rules do not see debt as a threat to sustainability but instead see owner investment as the major threat. It was not difficult to see why a particular club proposed them and others supported them, one of which, I believe, was Everton! It is not open to doubt that Everton has broken the regulations they voted for because they spent more than they had coming in from "legitimate" revenue streams! They cannot, therefore, complain when some sanctions are imposed. The PL, though, have behaved with their customary incompetent bias. There are obvious doubts about the independence of a commission of inquiry that includes the lawyer of a club which may sue Everton for damages after their own relegation and the finance director of another PL rival, involved in a relegation battle last season and possibly this. The sanctions imposed were also worryingly close to those demanded by the PL and the statement issued to justify these sanctions - that their wealthy owners could simply pay any fine - appears to show that sustainability was not part of the reasoning which led to the introduction of these rules. As we can see, the real justification was to limit spending to those revenue streams dominated by certain clubs, of which Manchester United were at that time the most obvious. Everton are paying a ridiculously high price to allow the Glazers et al to sleep at night.
City's case is different. It is obvious that we have not "overspent" but have always operated within the rules. We must simply show that our accounts are a true and full picture and that there has been no enormous, eleven year long conspiracy. CAS were convinced by the club's evidence and City were exonerated, not because there was just not enough evidence, but because there was NO evidence. The question of recordings of PL officials not wishing City to win another title are irrelevant to the charges and will only be relevant to any change in PL governance if it can be shown that improper means to prevent our winning the title again are/were used.