Keane says he would bin medals after Manchester City found guilty of financial rule-breaking

Roy Keane has said he would throw away any medals won during Manchester City’s period of financial rule-breaking, after the club was found guilty on Tuesday of all charges related to breaching Premier League financial regulations — a verdict that could ultimately cost City eight trophies won between 2009 and 2018.

The independent commission’s report found that City had overstated their income by “over £830m” and “relied on sham agreements to artificially inflate the club’s revenues and reduce its costs” over that nine-year period. The panel also concluded that witnesses had “given evidence at the hearing that they knew to be untrue and so had been dishonest.”

City continue to protest their innocence and have until Friday 2 October to appeal the judgement. Sanctions have not yet been applied, though the possibility of title-stripping remains on the table — including three Premier League championships won during the relevant period.

Keane, speaking ahead of England’s 2-0 win over the Czech Republic on Tuesday, was unequivocal in his verdict. “If I was a player, I’d be 100% sticking those medals in the bin,” he said. “Of course you would, it’s cheating. They won it on the pitch because cheating was going on.”

Of the club’s leadership, Keane added: “They knew it would hurt a lot of people, but they’ve still done it.”

Fellow pundit Ian Wright echoed the sentiment, describing the conduct as “cheating on an industrial scale” and calling for “an unprecedented punishment.”

Not everyone, however, is in favour of redistributing the trophies. Wayne Rooney — a former United teammate of Keane’s whose side finished runners-up to City in the 2011-12 season — said he would not want to receive a Premier League medal under those circumstances.

“I wouldn’t feel comfortable about accepting another Premier League medal if I’m being honest, because I don’t think we deserve it,” Rooney said. “We didn’t do enough that season to win the league.”

Rooney also expressed sympathy for City players who may have had no knowledge of what was happening above them. “If those players have got no understanding of what’s going on above them, then if that happened to me — if all of a sudden Manchester United have been doing the same and I’m getting my Premier League medals taken away from me — I’d be absolutely devastated.”