Luis Enrique backs Man City to keep titles despite Premier League financial rules guilty verdict

PSG head coach Luis Enrique has defended Manchester City following their guilty verdict for breaching Premier League financial rules, expressing hope on Tuesday that the club will not be stripped of titles or face severe sporting sanctions.

City were found to have artificially inflated their revenue by more than $1 billion across a nine-year period from 2009 to 2018, during which they won three Premier League titles. The club now faces potential punishments ranging from a substantial fine and points deductions to expulsion from the top flight, and has appealed the verdict.

“I hope everything works out well for Man City because I think what they have done on the pitch has been incredible over the last few years and they certainly deserved to win all the trophies they have won,” Luis Enrique said ahead of PSG’s Champions League visit to the Etihad Stadium. “The trophies you win on the pitch remain on the pitch. They deserved to win that and I hope they can avoid the sanction. But now we have to wait to see what the authorities decide or the judge is going to say.”

The comments carry a degree of solidarity between two clubs that have each faced UEFA sanctions for breaching Financial Fair Play regulations. City are owned by Abu Dhabi interests, while PSG are backed by Qatari investment.

City defender Rúben Dias sought to project calm within the squad, pointing to Sunday’s 3-0 win over Liverpool at Anfield as evidence that the players are not distracted by the off-field uncertainty.

“I feel like when you build yourself as a player, you build yourself against any kind of noise,” Dias said. “Personally, and I really feel like I speak for the whole group, we’re very calm. We trust the club, we’re very calm and we’re very focused on enjoying football.”

The sentencing phase of City’s case is ongoing, with the full range of sanctions yet to be determined by the independent commission.