Lampard and four Premier League managers react to Manchester City's guilty verdict on 114 charges

Manchester City’s Premier League rivals have started to weigh in on the club’s landmark guilty verdict, with five managers speaking publicly about the case at their Thursday press conferences. City were found guilty of 114 of 115 financial breaches brought against them by the Premier League and have confirmed they will appeal the decision, insisting they hold a “comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence” that will clear them.

Possible sanctions discussed in the aftermath range from a points deduction and financial penalty to the stripping of previous trophies or expulsion from the Premier League. City’s appeal is expected to be heard before the end of the year, with an independent three-person panel set to consider the case.

Frank Lampard (Coventry City)

Lampard was measured in his response, noting the appeal process as reason for caution. “We’ve all seen the news, it’s obviously big news, Man City are appealing,” he said. “I guess my reaction is that, right? What can you say when an appeal is going on? I’m not inside the story, I’m outside it completely. I played for Man City a long time ago now, for one year. We’ll wait and see what the result of the appeal is and onwards.”

On the potential impact on the season, Lampard added: “They are obviously a huge football club now, a huge squad of quality players, so we will see.”

Daniel Farke (Leeds United)

Farke was brief and direct, declining to engage with the subject. “Not my topic,” he said. “There are more qualified people to speak about this. It’s not up to me — I was not involved in the title race during these years. Only won one game with Norwich so can’t really complain. Makes no sense if everyone in the world talks about this.”

Leeds chairman Paraag Marathe also addressed the verdict, telling the BBC: “We’ll let everything play out through the proper channels. Obviously I have some certain opinions on it that it is probably best I don’t share at the moment. Whatever is the just result, I am sure it is going to be delivered.”

Managers Regis Le Bris, Marco Rose, and Matthias Jaissle also faced questions on the matter during their Thursday media briefings, reflecting how widely the verdict has reverberated across the division as the new Premier League weekend approaches.

City continue to deny any wrongdoing, and the timeline for the appeal panel’s final decision remains unclear.