Maresca vows he would still have joined City despite £900m financial rules verdict

Enzo Maresca has declared there is no club in the world he would rather manage than Manchester City, saying he would have taken the job even if the independent commission had already delivered its guilty verdict on the club’s 114 alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules.

Speaking publicly for the first time since the verdict was revealed, the City manager mounted a robust defence of his employers, insisting he trusts the organisation and believes they will win their appeal. The commission found that City had benefited from more than £900m of disguised funding between 2009 and 2018, with investigators describing certain sponsorship contracts as “sham” arrangements.

“I trust the people and this is also the reason why I joined the club,” Maresca said. “There is not another club in the world where I would like to be. So I’m very happy to be here. I’m very proud.”

Asked directly whether he would still have signed had the verdict already been in, Maresca was unequivocal. “One hundred percent, yes,” he said. “I know the organisation from years ago. I know how serious they are. I know they do the right things. I would like to speak about this when we’re going to win the appeal.”

Maresca, who served as Pep Guardiola’s assistant during City’s Treble-winning 2022-23 campaign, also said the club’s achievements in recent years — eight Premier League titles since 2009, including six under Guardiola, and a first Champions League crown in 2023 — are not tainted by the judgment. He signed a three-year contract at the Etihad Stadium last summer and paid compensation to Chelsea himself after holding discussions with City while still employed at Stamford Bridge.

Potential punishments if City’s appeal fails range from points penalties to expulsion from the Premier League, with relegation to the lower divisions among the scenarios being discussed. Guardiola once said he would remain at the club even if they dropped to the third tier, and Maresca offered a similarly defiant signal when pressed on the possibility of League One football.

“I won the Championship with Leicester,” he said. “So in case of League One, we’re going to see.”

Maresca also revealed that the Premier League charges were not discussed during his negotiations with City over the managerial role. “No, we didn’t speak about that because I don’t think that was a problem for the club at that time,” he said. “Also, because they are thinking in an honest way. I think they are convinced that in the end we want to win the appeal.”