Manchester City could still
face huge player bonus bills if they lose an appeal at the Court of
Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against a two-year European ban by UEFA,
according to revelations in the British media Tuesday.
Many
of City players have bonuses written in their contracts for Champions
League qualification and performance. In some cases, those run into
millions, the Daily Mail reported.
UEFA's financial fair play compliance body,
the CFCB, banned City from the Champions League for two seasons on
Friday and fined the club 30 million euros ($32.5 million).
It had concluded the club was not
being truthful in its submissions from 2012-16 that Etihad Airlines
wholly funded its annual £67.5 million ($88 million) sponsorship.
Should the appeal -- which the club's CEO
Ferran Soriano says in an email will be lodged soon -- fail it would see
City lose out on a minimum of £150 million a season for qualifying.
The Daily Telegraph reported that the club
promised to sue UEFA "for the next 10 years." The Guardian meanwhile
said it had unearthed more evidence that the club had fudged figures on
the sponsorship.
Club executives have been meeting with the
players and their representatives and discussing how they would make up
any losses in earnings. The club have told the players not to panic.
City fear rivals could try to lure players with low bids and the promise Champions League football.
Soriano remains bullish the club will win their appeal in an email sent to staff that was seen by the Daily Mail.
"It is important to recognise that this is not the end," wrote Soriano.
"There is more to come. We are confident that
with a fair and independent hearing we will prevail," added the
52-year-old Spaniard.
'Everybody do the Poznan'
Another email from club lawyer Simon Cliff
says Khaldoon Al Mubarak, the City chairman, intends to carry on
fighting even if they lose their appeal.
"Khaldoon said he would rather spend £30
million on the 50 best lawyers in the world to sue them for the next 10
years," wrote Cliff as cited by The Daily Telegraph.
City manager Pep Guardiola is expected to
confirm he will stay -- at the very least till his present contract ends
in 2021 -- when he gives his first press conference since the affair
broke after the Premier League game with West Ham on Wednesday.
"Look, whatever league we are in, I will still
be here," Guardiola told the players when they met up last Saturday
after their mini break according to Sky Sports News.
The Guardian, though, says it has dug out a
document from 2015 produced by a US aviation industry alliance which in
turn quoted a report by consultants written for the Crown Prince of Abu
Dhabi in 2010. The consultants stated that the Abu Dhabi government, not
Etihad airlines, was "covering" the sponsorship of Manchester City.
"While Etihad asserts that it funded the $640m
(total) cost of the sponsorship of Manchester City 'from its own
liquidity,' it provides no such evidence," read the document.
"An internal study that (the consultants)
prepared for the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, states that the Executive
Council of Abu Dhabi –- not Etihad -– covers the cost."
Meanwhile the club's fans plan to show their
anger at UEFA when Real Madrid visit for their Champions League Last 16
second leg clash on Wednesday next week.
They are to unfurl new anti-UEFA banners, for
which a crowd-funding appeal has raised £4,500 so far, and also do a
'Poznan' protest.
Lech Poznan fans turned their backs on the
field of play during a Europa League match against Manchester City in
2011 as part of an ongoing feud with UEFA.
"Everybody do the Poznan: turn your back on UEFA and be together as one," said Kevin Parker of the City Supporters Club.
"We want to show the football world that you're taking on all of us."
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