Henry says City's great players 'will always be great' despite guilty verdict

Thierry Henry has weighed in on Manchester City’s financial charges case, arguing that stripping the club of titles or imposing other sanctions cannot erase the quality of the players who wore the shirt during their dominant years.

The former Arsenal striker spoke out after City were found guilty on all but one of 114 counts of financial rule breaches by an independent commission. The club have since appealed the ruling, with the hearing date still to be confirmed.

Henry had previously been forced to deny fabricated quotes attributed to him in the days after the verdict was published. “Fake news,” he said at the time. “I haven’t spoken to anyone about Manchester City. Stop inventing stories.”

Speaking publicly for the first time on the substance of the case, Henry said he was not qualified to judge the legal or regulatory outcome, but felt strongly about the players caught in the fallout.

“I don’t have to go back to what I’m thinking — what I know is I’m not qualified to talk about what comes next or what the punishment is going to be,” he said. “I’m not a judge, definitely not a lawyer. I always say, stay in your lane.”

Henry reserved particular sympathy for City’s supporters and former players, arguing they bore no responsibility for whatever wrongdoing the commission identified at boardroom level.

“I feel sorry for them because it has nothing to do with them — they don’t know what happened,” he said. “Whatever outcome, whatever punishment, it’s always going to be, ‘ah, did you really win?’ That’s unfair for those guys. Vincent Kompany was a hell of a player, Kevin De Bruyne was a hell of a player.”

He acknowledged that the guilty finding carries weight even during the appeals process, but stopped short of prejudging the final outcome. “When they’ve been found guilty and when you appeal, it doesn’t erase everything, but it gives hope that maybe you might not be guilty,” he added. “I respect everyone’s opinion, but those great players, for me, will always be great regardless of what the punishment will be.”

Speculation over potential sanctions continues, with some calling for title strippings, points deductions, or even expulsion from the Football League. City, meanwhile, remain top of the Premier League following a win over Liverpool and return to action at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday against Ipswich Town.