Agbonlahor demands medals back from ex-teammates after Man City found guilty of 114 charges

Manchester City were found guilty of 114 of the 115 Premier League financial charges brought against them last week, and former Aston Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor has wasted no time in sending some pointed — if tongue-in-cheek — messages to his old rivals.

Agbonlahor revealed on talkSPORT that he has been in contact with several former City players from the era covered by the charges, telling them their medals may need to be returned. “I have even been throwing a bit of banter out there to Joleon Lescott,” he said. “I told him that the medal has got to come back. I messaged Meeks as well [Micah Richards], Barry — all of that era. I have been telling them that I’ll come and grab the medals and hide them before the Premier League knock on the door. But they took it well.”

City have maintained their innocence throughout the process and are expected to appeal the verdict. No punishment has yet been confirmed, though a points deduction, a fine, and even relegation have all been cited as possibilities under consideration.

Agbonlahor’s remarks carry a personal edge beyond the banter. He played in the Premier League from 2009 to 2018 — the period at the heart of the charges — and watched City systematically sign Aston Villa’s best players during that time. “You know what they did in 2009? They took our best player, Gareth Barry. You know what they did in 2010? They took our best player James Milner. You know what they did in 2015? Took our best player Fabian Delph,” he said.

Agbonlahor believes the financial implications for clubs who competed against City during those seasons could be enormous. “Every team will look at it and if I’m all these teams — get your lawyers ready, let’s go, we want paying,” he said. “What if you missed out on Champions League qualification? What if you missed out on relegation, what if you missed out on winning league titles? Every league position you miss out on is a few million pounds. All the money that Man City might have to pay to these clubs — off the scale.”

The scale of the verdict — 114 charges upheld out of 115 — makes this one of the most significant disciplinary rulings in English football history. The question of what punishment the independent commission will ultimately impose remains unanswered, and City’s anticipated appeal means the process is far from over.