Rio Ferdinand has urged the Premier League to “get on it” regarding Manchester City‘s 115 charges.
The Manchester United legend sent a sobering message to the English top-flight’s hierarchy a day after Pep Guardiola’s side clinched a historic fourth league title in a row following their final day 3-1 win over West Ham.
City were charged with breaches that took place between 2009 and 2018 in February 2023, but a resolution has yet to be found while the club have remained dominant on the football pitch. City have always denied the allegations against them with reports that a hearing could take place into the charges later this year.
READ MORE: ‘We have to’ – Pep Guardiola sends transfer message to Man City board after Arsenal title race
READ MORE: Man City proved Jurgen Klopp was right with his final comment on 115 charges
During Monday’s (May 20) episode of the Vibe with FIVE podcast, Ferdinand was chatting to co-host Joel Beya and praised Arsenal for challenging City all the way to the final day. At the same time, he admitted the charges they face must be dealt with as soon as possible by the Premier League.
“Arsenal put up a great fight and like you said, this is against the most dominant Premier League team we’ve ever seen, charges aside,” the 45-year-old said.
“We’ll wait to see what happens there, and you know what I’m not even bantering Man City about it, I think for football in general, the broadcasters, media, fans, and Man City players and staff and everyone connected to that club, there’s a cloud over football [and] Man City with these charges.”
Ferdinand urged the Premier League to “knuckle down” and resolve City’s situation in order to contribute to the “betterment of the game”. He added: “The powers that be need to make sure that they finalise this as soon as possible, we’re seeing Everton and Nottingham Forest getting points deducted and I know it’s a less complex situation.”
“Two years since the charges first came out, they’ve won two Premier League’s since then. They’ve been allowed to win two Premier Leagues so the powers that be need to knuckle down and get this done for the good of the game and the betterment of the game.”
The Puma home shirt features the traditional sky blue colour but has slightly darker blue detailed stripes across the front which take inspiration from the Etihad Stadium’s walkways. City moved to their new home from Maine Road in 2003 and the shirt honours that anniversary.
Among the 115 charges, 54 of the breaches relate to City failing to report accurate financial information, while 35 are regarding the club’s failure to cooperate with the Premier League’s authorities. With 14 charges relating to the failing to provide accurate information on player and manager payments, seven are for breaches to the Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) and the remaining five relates to breaching UEFA’s FFP rules.
City have strongly denied all 115 allegations and have vowed to clear their name.
Sign up to get even more from our Man City coverage
We want your views, Blues. You can become even more involved with our Man City coverage by signing up. This will unlock a whole host of things – including joining the comments and taking part in our special Q&As, where you can speak directly to our reporters about what’s happening at the Etihad Stadium this week and beyond.