It’s been two sodding years since the ‘Man City FFP’ phrase was first coined and this tiresome saga is finally nearing a conclusion, with the case’s verdict supposedly due ‘any day’.
Considering Man City‘s immense financial might, their unrelenting insistence on their innocence and the Premier League’s ineptitude, most rival supporters are resigned to a fine being the likeliest punishment.
Fair or not, this would be a colossal anti-climax, and it’s a lot more fun to fantasise about the potential consequences of significantly more severe sanctions.
A transfer ban and points deduction have also been mooted, while expulsion from the Premier League to League Two would be ‘on the table’ should most of Man City’s reported 130 charges be proven.
A la Rangers, Man City’s huge resources would enable them to steamroll new lowly opponents in the Football League en route to an inevitable Premier League return and they could have a lot of fun in doing so. Here are five steps they may make during this fantasy ride…
Stealing Wrexham’s recruitment modelAs much as the majority of Man City’s current squad owe their careers to the club and Pep Guardiola, there is no loyalty in football and they would leave League Two’s big-hitters at the drop of a hat once their freefall down to the fourth tier of English football is formalised.
Erling Haaland and Rodri would get their moves to Real Madrid, while Kevin De Bruyne, Ederson and others may head to Saudi Arabia. Oh, and Jack Grealish could return to Aston Villa, because wouldn’t that be nice?
Scott Carson might finally get a game or two, but this would still leave Man City with a bigger rebuild job ahead of their first season in League Two than what’s ongoing following their £180m January spend.While doing that, they would be wise to steal Wrexham’s recruitment model.
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Recent League Two campaigns have been dominated by one club stealing the limelight and having the finances to sign the cream of the crop at that level.
First, it was Salford City with the lure of Gary Neville and the rest of the Class of 92, but last term, it was Wrexham with Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
After securing their Football League return, Wrexham earned back-to-back promotions after having the funds and pulling power to build a squad immediately capable of reaching League One. This formula has also worked in the third tier with Phil Parkinson’s side on the brink of continuing their meteoric rise by reaching the Championship this year.
Man City’s riches are on a different stratosphere than Wrexham’s, but Financial Fair Play rules are in place throughout the pyramid, albeit to a lesser extent than in the Premier League. So unless they want to fall foul of more breaches, the Treble winners would be prohibited from buying costly low-level Premier League players to steamroll the minnows of League Two.
Instead, they can pursue promotion using the best of the best at that level before unceremoniously letting them go when they are surplus to requirements.
Replacing Pep GuardiolaIt is not only Haaland, De Bruyne and co. who would depart Man City post-expulsion, as Guardiola would surely look for an escape route from this new contract (that he perhaps regrets signing regardless of their FFP case) with ten attractive next move options awaiting him once he exits the Etihad.
So who would replace Guardiola? If Man City were in the Premier League, this would be a completely different conversation, with three current top-flight bosses among the favourites to be his successor.
But in League Two, why not go for the manager who got Mansfield Town promoted last season and has since stabilised in League One with interior resources? Yes, that’s right. Nigel Clough is the man for the job.
While he may not be as good a manager as his father, the 58-year-old still has a pretty respectable résumé from his work in the lower divisions. As we all know, the most important factor a board must consider when looking for a new manager is whether they ‘know the club’ and Clough happens to be a former Man City player, so the shoe fits. If it worked for Frank Lampard at Chelsea… oh wait.
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City’s kids take the limelightMan City have spent a bloody fortune on recruitment since their takeover in 2008 and just when their direct rivals could not be envious enough, they realise that they also have one of the best academies in the Premier League. The greedy sods.
They may be regretting their decision to sell Cole Palmer to Chelsea for just £42.5m, but Man City are still not exactly short of talented youngsters, with Rico Lewis and Oscar Bobb – along with the future stars they have bought in recent windows – among the crop of fresh-faced talents making waves in the first-team.
While Guardiola has been keen to afford his young players the opportunity to shine when the time is right, it is often their superstars who take all of the spotlight.
But in this scenario, that will no longer be the case as the drop to League Two would force Guardiola’s successor (Clough, obviously) into giving the limelight to Lewis, Bobb and more emerging talent, who would become icons in their own right as they help Man City sprint towards a return to the Premier League.
READ: Man City stars reassigned after guilty FFP verdict leads to Premier League relegation
Win the Football League TrophyMan City have become a trophy-winning machine during Guardiola’s time as head coach but their expulsion would likely precede a bit of a drought. Not quite to the standard of Tottenham Hotspur, but a drought all the same.
A prolonged run in the FA Cup or Carabao Cup would be possible, but this Man City team – which would be unrecognisable compared to their current Premier League outfit – would be expected to come up short against a high-quality foe along the way.
Barring a league title, the only other trophy that would be up for grabs for Man City as a League Two and/or League One team would be the Football League Trophy, which currently goes by the not-so-glamorous title of the Bristol Street Motors Trophy.
It would hardly be the most illustrious piece of silverware in Man City’s cabinet, but if it’s available, they may as well have a go at winning it and the trip to Wembley for the final would be a bonus.
Repeat 1999 play-off final comebackAs alluded to above, Man City supporters needn’t get so cross about the prospect of being expelled from the Premier League; they clearly would have a lot of fun while climbing up through the divisions.
A promotion every one or two years and a Wembley visit to win the *prestigious* Bristol Street Motors Trophy as well; what’s not to like?
Let’s not be naive, though. It will not all be sunshine and rainbows for Man City on their Premier League return journey. As previously proved by Rangers, promotion is not always guaranteed and the Champions League holders may have to rely on the play-off route at some stage.
If that were to be the case, a play-off triumph is most likely to come during their season contending with Championship silliness. And their supporters have experienced such a thing when their team got promoted to the Premier League in 1999.
On that day, Joe Royle’s Man City scored two last-gasp goals to equalise against Gillingham in a 2-2 draw before winning on penalties.
It’s always satisfying when history repeats itself, so how about Man City’s third and final promotion is earned in a similarly dramatic fashion in the Championship play-off final.