Manchester City’s spectacular £1billion-plus spending spree is being seen as a clear sign that the champions have won their legal battle with the Premier League.
City have embarked on a transfer window splurge that could see up to six new players arrive at the Etihad this month at a cost of £250million. The reigning champions have also committed £240m after agreeing a new contract with Erling Haaland that will see the Norwegian paid a £500,000-a-week basic wage over the next decade.
City’s Abu Dhabi and American owners have already spent £300m to build a new stand, hotel and leisure complex at the north end of the Etihad Stadium. And they also invested heavily in the £450m Co-op Live arena, a state-of-the-art concert venue that is the biggest in the country with a 20,500 capacity.
That’s despite the club being embroiled in a fight with the Premier League after being hit with 130 charges over serious financial misconduct allegations that could see City booted out of the competition if they are found guilty by an independent commission. The three-man panel of High Court judges concluded a 12-week hearing before Christmas and are expected to deliver their verdict in the spring.
City’s spending is being seen in legal circles as a positive sign for the club. A legal source said: “It would be a huge shock if City’s owners decided to bankroll such a massive programme of investment if they were about to be relegated from the Premier League.
“Spending heavily in the transfer market and handing Haaland a new contract suggest that they feel they have cleared themselves of at least the most serious allegations. It is hard to see a different scenario. It would be like a convicted man buying a new Rolls Royce on the morning he expected to be given a 10-year prison sentence.”
Back in October, when a judgement was made on City’s claim that the Premier League’s ATP rules broke UK competition law, there was a stand-off between the two parties when the verdict was only made public after a two-week delay. Pep Guardiola has admitted that he knew about Haaland’s contract extension before Christmas.
He said: “I knew Erling had signed the contract 20 days ago. He signed two or three weeks ago.”
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City, who have already signed Argentine teenager Claudio Echeverri, are closing in of deals for Eintracht Frankfurt’s Egyptian forward Omar Marmoush, Lens’ Uzbekistan defender Abdukodir Khusanov and Brazilian teenage centre-back Vitor Reis of Palmeiras and Juventus’ Italian international full-back Andrea Cambiaso at a cost of almost £190million.
Guardiola also wants a new midfielder after losing Rodri for the season with a cruciate injury. Guardiola said: “It might not be our best season, but I have the same feeling that I had when we had success. This is a good place to be.”
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