The Socceroos will discover their path to Asian Cup glory on tonight at 9pm AEST when the draw for next year’s tournament takes place.
The tournament had been set to run in China in June-July this year, but Covid-19 forced the Asian Football Confederation to move the competition to Qatar – and subsequently reschedule the competition to January-February 2024 due to temperatures.
Follow the draw from 9pm AEST in our LIVE BLOG below!
The draw will be held in Katara Opera House in Doha, with Socceroos head coach Graham Arnold set to attend.
A host of legendary Asian footballers will conduct the draw, where the 24 teams will be split into six groups of four teams.
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
Real Madrid aren’t just targeting one mind-blowing transfer swoop this off-season, with the Spanish giants reportedly eyeing a massive double play for both England midfielder Jude Bellingham and France superstar Kylian Mbappe.
Meanwhile, West Ham appear finally ready to let their biggest name leave – but for a hefty price.
Here’s all the latest transfer news in our Rumour Mill!
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
Where will Ange end up next season? | 00:56
MADRID EYE NEW GALACTICO ERA
Real Madrid has won five Champions League crowns in nine years, and their 1-1 draw with Manchester City in the semi-final first leg means they are closing in on a stunning sixth European title.
But with Croatian superstar Luka Modric 37 years old, Karim Benzema 35, and Toni Kroos 33, it’s no wonder that Madrid is looking to add world-class players to their squad to continue an unprecedented run of success.
Their long pursuit of Jude Bellingham is apparently inching closer to success. The 19-year-old midfielder is one of the most in-demand talents in world football, but Madrid appear set to beat out a host of European giants for his signature.
Manchester City remain hopeful he will choose England over Spain, but Liverpool already withdrew from the race for his signature last month.
According to German outlet Bild, Madrid will pay Borussia Dortmund around £130m for his services – and the player himself will pocket a huge pay rise.
Bild claims Madrid will pay Bellingham £17.4m-a-year ($A32.4m per year; £334,000-a-week), far beyond Dortmund’s offer of a new deal at £230,000-a-week ($A430k per week).
De Bruyne blasts equaliser to save City! | 00:45
But Bellingham isn’t the only big name on their wishlist.
Real Madrid will also reportedly target French superstar and 2018 World Cup winner Kylian Mbappe, amid ongoing instability at PSG.
The French giants are headed for a rebuild as their own galacticos strategy in recent years has failed to deliver a single Champions League triumph.
Lionel Messi will leave at season’s end, with Neymar also likely to depart. PSG is reportedly hoping to rebuild the squad around a core of young French players, making Mbappe the talisman and centrepiece of the new-look Parisian side.
But Madrid previously came close to signing Mbappe last year, when they offered a reported £170 million transfer fee and also held negotiations with the player.
Despite massive financial losses during Covid-19, PSG still rejected the move – sparking fury in Madrid and among Spain’s La Liga hierarchy.
Mbappe subsequently signed a new deal with PSG until 2025, although the last year of that deal is reportedly optional.
Now Madrid are ready to revive their interest if the instability in Paris – and their dismal season – begins to push Mbappe towards an exit.
Any deal would likely eclipse the world record fee of €222m PSG paid Barcelona for Neymar in 2017, with PSG set to profit on the €180m they paid Monaco to secure Mbappe’s services in 2018.
The French 24-year-old said two months ago he was focused on the club and on-field success.
He said: “For me it’s a privilege to play here. I’m from Paris and being at PSG is special.
“I arrived when I was young and I’ve grown and matured a lot, on and off the pitch, since then.”
Asked if the team’s Champions League failures would push him out the door, he said:
“I don’t think so. If I linked my future to the Champions League, and I don’t want to disrespect the club, I would have gone very far!
“I am here and I am very happy, and for the moment I’m not thinking about anything other than making PSG happy.”
West Ham will let their own superstar England midfielder Declan Rice depart to a Champions League club – but only if they get an offer worth £120m.
That’s according to Sky Sports, who report the Hammers would take £100m plus a player in return.
Manchester United submitted a £100m bid last off-season, while Arsenal are reportedly leading the race for his signature this time around. Chelsea and Liverpool are both also interested in the 24-year-old, according to numerous reports.
Rice is currently on a reported contract worth around £70,000 a week – an absolute pittance compared to his value.
He turned down an offer from the Hammers for around £200,000-a-week before the start of last season, but is likely to exceed even that should he move to a Champions League club.
Rice’s current contract expires at the end of next season with a club option to extend it one year further – but the Hammers have reportedly promised to let Rice get his Champions League dream if the money is right.
They are aiming for a figure surpassing the British football transfer record of £106 million Chelsea paid for Enzo Fernandez in January.
Rice has had another impressive season.Source: Getty Images
However, back in March Premier League great Gary Neville said Rice was worth only around half that £120m price tag.
“I love Declan Rice,” Neville told Sky Sports. “Obviously, Declan knows the position, but when I look at world-class holding midfielders, and players of that type, because he doesn’t score or assist enough goals, you’re putting him into that category of more of a destroyer.
“[Then], you’ve then got to be someone who I think is highly competent on the ball and linking play, and having that knowledge of the subtleties of getting on the ball from the back four.
“I personally feel, at this moment in time, that Declan needs to go and work under a different set-up, he needs to drive forward in his career, he needs to go and play at a different club.
“I think there’s a lot of growth, and a lot for Declan to do to get up to the levels of Casemiro, Rodri and players at the top of the game in those positions.
“But, for me, I wouldn’t be spending £110m or £120m on Rice if I was Manchester United this summer. I would spend £50m-£60m on Declan Rice, but I wouldn’t spend the figures being reported.”
Inter Milan have one foot in the Champions League final after an impressive 2-0 win over AC Milan in a pulsating last-four derby.
Inter have the upper hand ahead of Tuesday’s second leg of the biggest Milan derby of a generation thanks to early strikes from Edin Dzeko and Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
Edin Dzeko celebrates after scoring the team’s first goal.Source: Getty Images
Simone Inzaghi’s side were deserving winners at the San Siro after creating the bulk of the opportunities and barely letting Milan have a sniff in front of goal.
Inter could have won by a wider margin as Hakan Calhanoglu smashed a shot off the post and Dzeko wasted a great chance early in the second half, but they are still heavy favourites to reach the final of Europe’s top club competition for the first time since they last won it 13 years ago.
And Inter could easily have had a penalty if not for VAR, after referee Jesus Gil Manzano overturned a penalty decision after looking at the pitchside monitor.
After half an hour, Inter striker Lautaro Martinez went down in the box under pressure from Simon Kjaer. The defender was booked immediately as the referee pointed to the spot.
But after reviewing the incident on the video, the referee reversed his decision and rescinded both the card and the penalty.
Premier League great Rio Ferdinand called it a ‘stonewall’ penalty on BT Sport, but Steven Gerrard said Martinez “killed himself” by exaggerating the contact as he dramatically tumbled to the ground.
Controversy aplenty as City, Real draw | 01:10
Nevertheless, Inter still cruised to a deserved 2-0 victory.
“The whole team was really motivated, it’s not every day you play a derby in the Champions League semi-final,” Dzeko told Prime Video after his third goal since January.“Sometimes I don’t score goals and that’s all anyone talks about, but I also give something else. Today I worked for the team and that was what was needed in such a big match.”
Reaching the final would be extra sweet for Inter as it would avenge semi- and quarter-final eliminations at the hands of Milan in 2003 and 2005.
The winners of the tie will face holders Real Madrid or Manchester City in the June 10 showpiece in Istanbul. The first leg of that semi-final finished 1-1 in Spain on Tuesday.
Milan, who also struck the woodwork through Sandro Tonali, have their work cut out if they want to have a chance at being crowned European champions for the eighth time and will hope Rafael Leao is available for next week’s decisive clash.
The absence of star man Leao left Milan without their key attacking threat and allowed Inter to play more on the front foot knowing their opponents didn’t have the Portugal winger’s pace in their armoury.
Injured AC Milan forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic watches on.Source: AFP
Sergio Busquets was showered with praise by the football world after announcing Wednesday he will leave Barcelona in June at the end of his contract, ending a highly successful era at the club.
“The moment has arrived to announce this is my last season at Barcelona,” said Busquets on Instagram.
“It has been an unforgettable journey.”
Busquets won the Champions League three times with Barcelona and La Liga on eight occasions before this season, with the Catalans set to triumph for the first time in four years.
The 34-year-old has been a key player for Barca since breaking into the first team under then coach Pep Guardiola in 2008, becoming the club’s captain in 2021.
Busquets is third Barcelona’s all-time appearance list, playing for the club on 718 occasions, lifting 31 trophies.
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
Where will Ange end up next season? | 00:56
“It has been an honour, a dream, a pride. It has been everything to be able to defend and represent this badge for so many years, but everything has a beginning and an end,” said Busquets.
“Although it has not been an easy decision, I think the time has come.”
In many ways, Busquets is the last player of an iconic era in Barcelona history. His teammates like Xavi, Pedro, Lionel Messi, Gerard Pique, Andres Iniesta, Dani Alves, Luis Suarez, Javier Mascherano and Carles Puyol, brought an immense amount of success – with Busquets now the final departure of that great line of legends.
Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez, who played with Busquets in midfield for several years, wanted the midfielder to stay next season, but said the decision was his.
Busquets’ teammates past and present paid tribute to him on social media after he announced his future lay elsewhere.
Paris Saint-Germain forward Lionel Messi, a close friend, wrote a heartfelt message on Instagram.
“On the pitch you were always No 5, but in reality as a player and as a person, you are a 10, Busi,” said the Argentine playmaker.
“Thank you for everything on and off the pitch.”
Barcelona defender Jordi Alba also showed his affection for the veteran midfielder.
“My friend, after so much we’ve lived through together, what can I say that you don’t know?” wrote Alba on Instagram.
“You’re leaving your home, having made an indelible imprint on Barcelona’s history.
“More than 700 games and a fundamental part of so many titles, and glorious nights that all Barca fans will forever remember.”
Even rivals paid tribute, with Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric saying: “one of the best players I have played against.”
“Sergio is part of our badge, and will always have Barca as his home,” said Barca president Joan Laporta in a video, implying the player would return one day in a different role.
“He is a Barca fan through his roots and has Barca in his blood — he will have a longer Barca journey.”
In his video, Busquets did not say where he might go next, with Spanish reports suggesting he may move to a team in Saudi Arabia.
Former Barcelona forward Messi is another player who may end up in the oil-rich kingdom after a source close to negotiations told AFP it was a “done deal” for the Argentine forward to move to the Middle East.
However Messi’s father and agent Jorge Messi said Tuesday that the World Cup winner’s future would only be decided at the end of the season.
Busquets won the World Cup with Spain in 2010 and the European Championship in 2012, a key member of the national team for nearly 15 years until he retired from international duty in December.
The midfielder was the only member of the 2010 World Cup winning team who was still part of the squad in Qatar in 2022 as Spain reached the last 16.
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
However, the former Premier League winner attracted criticism for stating Kerr shouldn’t be proclaimed as such and that Kerr and Cahill’s records should be separated.
In the Matildas documentary, a snippet shows Kerr branding the “not equal” headline of Slater’s column “literally the most sexist thing you could say.”
Speaking on The Back Page, Slater doubled down on his column and felt it was “balanced” but Candice Warner did not share that same stance.
“Robbie, I don’t really agree with you,” Warner said.
“I thought it was out of line. You’ve got two young daughters. I thought it was incredibly sexist.
“What are you saying to young girls who might be aspiring [to be professional footballers]?”
Warner then followed up by asking if Slater regretted his column.
Robbie Slater doubled down on his controversial column surrounding Sam Kerr. Picture: SuppliedSource: Supplied
Slater replied: “I don’t regret the column because I stand by that I separated Tim Cahill from Sam Kerr and said Tim’s our greatest ever Socceroo goalscorer and Sam is our greatest ever women’s goalscorer.
“I don’t think that was out of line.
“But if I listened to my 9 year old daughter, maybe I did do wrong. She came up to me and said, ‘Dad, what have you done to Sam Kerr, she’s so much better than you?’ She’s got a poster of Sam Kerr on the wall.
“I’ve had to answer some questions. But I think the column was balanced.”
Slater, who remains a “big fan” of Kerr, further explained his decision to pen the column before he was cheekily interrupted by a text from his young daughter.
“The whole conversation started when Sam scored a goal more, now she’s got much more, than Tim Cahill had scored for the Socceroos,” Slater said.
“I just wrote a column separating the two. There’s A-League women’s, you’ve got A-League men’s, I don’t know, I just thought it was confusing everything. They’re all great, they’re both great.
Just one win separates Ange Postecoglou from accomplishing a feat achieved only seven times in Celtic’s grand history.
The domestic treble — the Scottish Premiership, Scottish League Cup and Scottish FA Cup — is within touching distance for the Hoops.
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
The League Cup has already been secured and so too has the league title, while a date with second-tier Inverness Caledonian Thistle looms in the Scottish FA Cup Final on June 4.
What makes this feat even sweeter is the fact Postecoglou’s side knocked out bitter rivals Rangers in both cup competitions and will finish ahead of them in the league standings.
Each trophy hoisted above Postecoglou’s head only strengthens a bond between manager, club and fan rarely seen in modern football.
But it also means the links for Postecoglou and Premier League clubs will not relent.
There’s a strong case for the former Socceroos boss to park up in Glasgow for the foreseeable future.
Guaranteed trophies, an adoring fan base and the opportunity to compete against Europe’s elite has an enormous pull.
But so too is the chance to test yourself in the biggest, most watched league on the planet with access to finances teams across the continent could only dream of.
It’s unlikely The Clash’s hit song ‘Should I Stay or Should I Go’ is played on repeat on Postecoglou’s Spotify account, but at some stage, he’ll be faced with such a predicament, if he isn’t already.
Postecoglou and Celtic claim Premiership | 02:33
EURO-SIZED ‘CARROT’ LEAVES ANGE BEGGING FOR MORE
Everywhere Postecoglou has stopped off on his managerial journey he has won a trophy and, in some cases, more than one.
But should Postecoglou match a feat Celtic managed just three times in a staggering 113 years before an unprecedented run of four trebles in a row from 2016 to 2010, it would be his most successful spell at a single destination.
Hamish Carton, the author of Never Stop: How Ange Postecoglou Brought the Fire Back to Celtic, conceded Celtic’s 2016/17 ‘invincibles’ treble “is never going to be beaten.”
But should Postecoglou complete the clean sweep, it would certainly come close.
“I think it would be the second best out of that recent run of five,” Carton told foxsports.com.au.
“Just given that the connection there is between the fans and the team and how relentless we’ve been.
“Also given we’ve beaten Rangers in all three competitions, I think that makes it special. We’ve beaten the second-best team in the country in every competition to hopefully win the treble.”
With the objective of retaining their status as kings of Scotland secured, it also means Postecoglou will get another crack at leading his troops in the lucrative UEFA Champions League.
Thanks to Scotland being ranked ninth in UEFA’s coefficient table at the conclusion of last season, the Scottish Premiership champions receive automatic entry into the group stage.
Postecoglou was handed a brutal reality check in terms of the ruthlessness of Europe’s elite in his debut Champions League campaign.
Despite creating plenty of chances, even against the likes of defending champions Real Madrid, Celtic shipped 15 goals across their five group games.
But the heartening fact Celtic more than held their own and played Postecoglou’s eye-catching brand of football should provide plenty of respite even if they didn’t win a game.
It’s why Socceroos legend Robbie Slater believes Postecoglou will want to stay in Glasgow to right those European wrongs.
“The only question mark over Celtic this season is the Champions League,” Slater said on the Fox Football Podcast.
Postecoglou is one trophy away from leading Celtic to yet another treble. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
“That’s one of the reasons I think he’ll stay. I think the Champions League carrot of going again.
“(He’s) experienced it with this group of players, there’s some new ones but this group of players largely have experienced that one (campaign), which might make them do even better in the next one.
“I think that makes him stay.”
Champions League aside, the mere fact Postecoglou is at a massive club cannot be understated.
Throughout his entire managerial career, the 58-year-old has yearned for a job that would reflect the passion he has for the game.
At Celtic, it’s a match made in heaven.
Granted, the success Postecoglou has had in Glasgow is aided by the deep pockets of the club, resources which blow almost every team in Scotland out of the water.
It inevitably led to Rangers boss Michael Beale’s infamous “lucky man” jibe due to the funds available to Postecoglou but, in typical Ange fashion, the Aussie had the perfect reply.
And it highlights just why he loves the job so much.
Postecoglou has developed an exceptional bond between himself, his players and Celtic fans. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
“I would never use that language about somebody in my position,” Postecoglou said.
“I’m not sure which bit is ‘lucky’. I think Michael at the time was referring to the fact I had money to spend but I didn’t get to this position out of luck.
“I worked 25 years of coaching to be entrusted at a club like this. This isn’t my first job.
“If it was my first job maybe I’d be lucky but it’s not, it’s 25 years of hard work.”
Trophies, constant participation in the Champions League and an adoring fanbase is a lifestyle Postecoglou could get used to.
But, as his managerial career has shown, he’s never been one to set up shop at one club for too long.
Which is why the noise surrounding a move south of the Scottish border is only going to ramp up the longer he stays at Celtic and the more trophies he wins.
If anything, it’s already started.
Postecoglou has caught the eye of Premier League teams. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
‘ONLY A MATTER OF TIME’ BEFORE PL SWITCH?
Scottish football fans know it’s very much a case of death, taxes and a successful Celtic or Rangers manager being linked with a Premier League move.
Brendan Rodgers and Steven Gerrard were the most recent managers of the famous rivals to make the switch down south to significantly varying degrees of success.
Rodgers joined Leicester City midway through the 2018/19 season from Celtic, a decision that left a bitter taste in the mouths of many Hoops fans.
The Northern Irishman went on to lead Leicester to consecutive fifth-place finishes from 2020 to 2022 while also winning the 2020/21 FA Cup, the first time the Foxes had won the prestigious trophy.
However, Rodgers’ Midas touch eventually ran out this season and was sacked by Leicester with the club hurtling towards the Championship.
As for Gerrard, he moved to Aston Villa in November 2021 to replace Dean Smith.
Despite four wins from his opening six games and ensuring the club’s safety, the wheels quickly fell off the Gerrard wagon and he was sacked less than a year into the role.
Perhaps both are a cautionary tale for Postecoglou, although the success of Rodgers should not be seen as a deterrent.
However, Carton’s bold claim on Postecoglou’s ability compared to Rodgers and Gerrard bodes well for any such Premier League switch.
Steven Gerrard’s failed spell at Aston Villa should serve as a cautionary tale for Posteecoglou. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
“I’d say for me, Ange is probably a better manager than those two,” Carton said.
“He’s doing possibly even more amazing things than those two. I know Rodgers won back-to-back trebles, but the competition now is much better.”
After his successful first season at the helm Postecoglou has gone from strength-to-strength in Glasgow and eviscerated the early scepticism that surrounded his appointment.
It’s why there has been links aplenty for Postecoglou and various Premier League vacancies.
The likes of Brighton, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Leeds United and Everton to name a few were all credited with some form of interest in the Celtic boss.
Carton notes it’s “become a bit of a laughing matter among the Celtic support” at just how frequently Postecoglou’s name pops up whenever there’s a new role to fill.
But the intrigue surrounding Postecoglou’s future stepped up a notch when he went from being linked to mid-table clubs to the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea.
Granted, it’s likely the London heavyweights go down a different route when it comes to their new man in their respective dugouts.
But the shift in calibre of teams Postecoglou was linked with reiterates a claim former Manchester City star Micah Richards made in his column for the Daily Mail.
“It was interesting to see Ange Postecoglou linked with the Chelsea job,” Richards wrote.
Former Manchester City star Micah Richards is a fan of Postecoglou. (Photo by Lewis Storey/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
“I spoke to Joe Hart shortly after he joined Celtic in August 2021 and he raved about his new manager, particularly about his character and outlook on life.
“He plays brave football and Joe said nothing flusters him. It is only a matter of time before a club here takes a plunge on him.”
There’s also the school of thought, fair or unfair, that there is a ceiling on what Postecoglou can do in Scotland.
With Celtic, Postecoglou is expected to hoover up trophies given the gap in quality between the Hoops and the rest of the Scottish top flight with the exception of Rangers.
“Postecoglou is a man who does things his own way but not even the 2015 Asian coach of the year can change how modern European football works,” Duerden wrote.
“There is a limit to what anyone can do in Scotland, even at a huge club like Celtic and even with top-class recruitment.
“If the ambition is to work at the highest level of world football, the Premier League offers the best opportunity with cashed-up clubs, elite fellow coaches and worldwide attention.”
Leicester fall back into relegation zone | 01:01
Although the bright lights of the Premier League are extremely enticing, it is one of, if not the most, cutthroat leagues in the world.
This season, 15 managers have come and gone in a bloodbath the likes of which we have never seen.
It highlights the ruthlessness in which owners are willing to dispose of managers in the pursuit of the big dollar signs the Premier League brings.
Slater believes the trigger-happy nature of Premier League owners will have Postecoglou wary of taking any job down south.
“What we’ve talked about in the unstable environment of the Premier League where basically it looks like if you take over and you don’t hit the ground running, you get sacked,” Slater said.
“That’s where Ange could (be concerned). If he does turn around and goes to, say, Chelsea, he knows that you’ve got to hit the ground running. You don’t get time. That’s not a question, just a fact.
“Can he deal with that? He did at Celtic. He had to hit the ground running. The first few weeks they were talking: ‘he’s not the right [man].’ Then he turned it around very quickly and obviously won the title and everything was sweet.”
Yet the flipside of the remarkable managerial turnover is that there’s likely to be more Premier League openings than ever before.
Could Chelsea owner Todd Boehly make a play for Postecoglou? (Photo by Alex Davidson/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Going into next season, Crystal Palace, Leeds, Tottenham, Chelsea and Leicester City will all need new managers.
Granted, one of Leicester or Leeds are a high chance of dropping down to the Championship, something Postecoglou seems unlikely to do at this stage of his managerial career.
Chelsea also seem destined to appoint former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino which takes them off the table.
But it still leaves a number of Premier League teams needing a fresh face in the dugout and some clubs not listed earlier may swing the axe at the end of the season.
The sheer amount of vacancies in the English top flight is something we’ve never seen and it may not come around again.
It presents a big dilemma for Postecoglou: could he choose to cash in on his stocks when they’re sky high, or does he roll the dice on a third season with Celtic and maintain his trajectory?
If, and it’s a big if, results begin to slip away a little, the naysayers will immediately latch on.
It will also only drive up the argument that Postecoglou may not be able to cut it in the Premier League if he can’t keep the momentum up for three seasons in Scotland where it is essentially a two-horse race.
Additionally, Postecoglou doesn’t have the immediate backing of media pundits in England who will happily namedrop former players as suitable candidates for managerial openings.
No matter how often they may have failed in previous roles, certain individuals (ahem, Frank Lampard) continue getting jobs in high positions.
Postecoglou almost certainly wouldn’t receive the same treatment by those pundits, especially if things turn a little sour up north.
Where will Ange end up next season? | 00:56
ANGE IS ‘THE KING’ OF GLASGOW … LONG MAY HE REIGN?
Despite being hailed as somewhat of a deity in the green and white half of Glasgow, The Guardian’s Ewan Murray knows there is a ceiling as to what Postecoglou can achieve with the club.
“There should, however, be no harm in speculating on or, in Celtic’s case, planning for the inevitable,” The Guardian’s Ewan Murray wrote.
“This is a consequence of success. Clubs who need a manager to reboot attitudes, a playing squad, tactics and a transfer vision will note Postecoglou’s body of work.
“Celtic should not be the end game for players or managers who aspire to be the best.”
What’s most clear when assessing the views of pundits everywhere is Postecoglou will eventually move on.
Modern football dictates as such.
Rarely do managers stay in one place for very long anymore, with Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp at Manchester City and Liverpool respectively the notable exceptions to the rule.
It remains to be seen whether Postecoglou would leave on his own terms or if he will be nudged aside, but all signs point to the former given his tight-knit connection with the fanbase.
Of course, the most critical element of this discussion, which has been largely ignored by all parties concerned, is that a club must make a concrete offer to Postecoglou.
At this stage, it is all paper talk and betting markets sending the rumour mill into overdrive.
And for all the glitz and glamour on offer in the Premier League, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
Just ask Steven Gerrard.
Everton thrash Brighton in important win | 01:16
It’s why Slater believes the level-headed Postecoglou won’t even cast so much as a sideways glance at the Premier League.
“I’ve got a feeling he might stay at Celtic,” Slater said.
“He’s the king. They love him. And he’s got another crack at the Champions League.
“I think that’s the thing that grabs him. If you go to Chelsea he’s got no European football. If you go to the (other mid-table) teams we’re talking about there’s no European football. Even Spurs doesn’t look like (playing) European football. Do you give away the Champions League?
“If there’s a safe seat in football in the world, Ange is in one of them.”
Safe seats in football are extremely difficult to come by, as are constant opportunities to qualify for the Champions League.
And Carton, much like large portions of the adoring Celtic fanbase, cannot see why Postecoglou would give that up so soon into his Glasgow adventure.
“He’s waited so long for this kind of gig, the fans adore him,” Carton said.
“Wherever he goes for the rest of his career, he’ll never find another club where he’s loved as much as this, I’m confident in saying that.
“He’s got a group of players who are doing amazing and have so much more potential.
“It’s not as if he’s only got five to 10 years left in management, he could have another 20 years so he’s got plenty of time to enjoy and achieve at Celtic and then eventually move on.
Seeking Champions League revenge against Real Madrid would be a grave error by Manchester City, Pep Guardiola claimed on Monday ahead of their semi-final showdown.
The City coach said his team would try and capitalise on an “opportunity” instead of aiming to make Carlo Ancelotti’s reigning champions pay for eliminating them at the same stage last season.
Follow the first leg of Manchester City’s Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid in our LIVE BLOG below!
The former Barcelona player and manager was at odds with City’s defensive midfielder Rodri, who said the team were hungry for revenge against the record 14-time winners on Tuesday at the Santiago Bernabeu.
“It will be a huge mistake, we’re not here for revenge, just an opportunity,” Guardiola told a news conference.
“Last season we did everything, more than everything to reach the final, but (in) football … it’s not enough.”
City have never lifted the trophy but Madrid have triumphed five times in the last nine seasons.
Guardiola’s side beat Madrid 4-3 in the first leg last season and led by a goal in the return, until two late Rodrygo Goes strikes forced extra-time.
Karim Benzema scored a penalty in the additional period to send Madrid through to the Paris final, where they beat Liverpool.
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
“I think we did 180 minutes brilliantly but it’s not enough sometimes, you can lose the leg in five minutes,” said Spanish midfielder Rodri.
“You have to kill the opponent when you can. We’ve learnt from the past but I don’t like to talk about the past.
“We’ve learnt a lot, it’s another year, another goal, with the hunger of having revenge.” Guardiola did agree with Rodri that City played well over both ties last season, despite their eventual elimination.
“We had an exceptional first game in Manchester, we did a really good game here,” said Guardiola.
“All we can do is congratulate them and move forward. One year later, we are here.”
The coach said he thought his side would one day triumph in Europe, after disappointment in the 2021 final, where they were beaten by Chelsea.
Guardiola praised his club’s stability, in contrast to other sides who triumph but then fall away in subsequent years.
City have reached at least the last eight in each of the past six seasons.
“One day we will reach the final and we will win it,” said Guardiola.
“I wouldn’t like to win the Champions League and then go down and down and down.
“Being stable is the most important things as a club, Madrid are an example.”
Follow the first leg of Manchester City’s Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid in our LIVE BLOG below!
Argentine superstar Lionel Messi will play in Saudi Arabia next season under a blockbuster deal, a source told AFP on Tuesday, potentially joining his arch-rival Cristiano Ronaldo as the kingdom lavishes its oil wealth on sport.
Messi will sign a “huge” deal with an as-yet-unnamed club, said the source, who is close to the negotiations that are taking place just months after the 35-year-old lifted the World Cup in Qatar.
“Messi is a done deal. He will play in Saudi Arabia next season,” said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
“The contract is exceptional. It’s huge. We are just finalising some small details,” added the source, who is not authorised to speak to media.
There was no confirmation from Messi’s current club Paris Saint-Germain, which noted simply that he was under contract until June 30 when contacted by AFP.
A separate PSG source said: “If the club had wanted to renew his contract, it would have been done earlier.”
Leicester fall back into relegation zone | 01:01
Just five years after allowing its first non-Muslim tourists visit and letting women drive, Saudi Arabia is attempting to open up its conservative society and diversify its oil-reliant economy.
The world’s biggest oil exporter has thrown hundreds of millions at sports deals including Ronaldo’s signing, F1 in Jeddah and the divisive LIV Golf tour, drawing frequent claims it is “sportswashing” its human rights record.
Messi was suspended by Qatari-owned PSG last week for an unauthorised mid-season trip to Saudi, where he is a tourism ambassador.
His expected arrival follows in the footsteps of his long-time sparring partner Ronaldo, who joined Saudi Pro League club Al Nassr in a massive deal in January.
Ronaldo’s agreement to June 2025 is said to total more than 400 million euros ($439 million), making him the world’s highest paid athlete according to Forbes.
Both deals — along with others including LIV Golf and the 2021 purchase of Newcastle United football club — are being bankrolled by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), one of the world’s biggest sovereign wealth funds, the source said.
“The negotiations didn’t take as much time as the ones with Ronaldo. As we now know the recipe to contract world-class players,” said the source.
“It’s Saudi Arabia that brought him not a specific club. The Money comes from one place — PIF.”
Forest jump clear of relegation zone | 00:58
Despite several reports linking Messi with Al Hilal, one of the top Saudi teams, club sources told AFP they had not been in direct contact with the Argentine’s team.
“He is a player at the end of his career and he is not here only for football. He is here to secure international attraction for the kingdom,” said the source following the Messi negotiations.
“The plan is not only Messi and Ronaldo, the plan is to bring glorious players like these two and also upcoming youth players who have a promising future.
“We want people to visit Saudi Arabia to watch football stars,” the source added. “Who could imagine that local league matches would attract foreigners? It’s just the Ronaldo impact.”
Messi, who turns 36 in June, has had two lacklustre seasons in Paris after a glorious era at Barcelona where he won four Champions League and 10 La Liga titles, and is still worshipped by the fans.
The record seven-time world player of the year, joining a mouth-watering attack featuring Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, scored just 11 goals in his first season as he helped PSG to a routine Ligue 1 title.
But PSG have got no closer to a coveted maiden Champions League victory, bowing out twice in the last 16 even with the illustrious Argentine in their line-up.
Frustrations boiled over last week when black-clad PSG protesters let off flares and sang hostile chants targeting the underperforming Messi, Neymar and Italian midfielder Marco Verratti.
The angry scenes contrasted with Messi’s career-crowning moment in December, when he led Argentina to a breathless World Cup final victory over Mbappe and France in Doha to fill the biggest gap in his resume.
Saudi Arabia has held talks with Egypt and Greece about a joint World Cup bid, according to officials. In coming years it will hold the men’s Asian Cup football tournament, the Asian Games and even the Asian Winter Games on artificial snow.
On Tuesday, state-owned oil giant Saudi Aramco announced quarterly profits of $31.9 billion — more than three-quarters of the incomes of oil majors BP, Shell, ExxonMobil, Chevron and TotalEnergies combined.
There were trophies galore for a number of Aussies abroad over the weekend, with one youngster also making his debut in a top five European league.
Read on to see how they got on in the latest edition of the Roo Radar!
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
TRIO’S SCOTTISH DELIGHT
It’s been one of the biggest stories in Australian football these past few days.
Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou led the Hoops to consecutive Scottish Premierships thanks to a 2-0 win away to Hearts.
The league triumph means Postecoglou is on track to deliver the treble to Celtic Park, with only second-tier Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the Scottish FA Cup final standing in the Hoops’ way.
Socceroos midfielder Aaron Mooy played his part in the win over Hearts as he came off the bench to assist Celtic’s second goal.
It meant Mooy, who is undoubtedly one of Celtic’s signings of the season given he arrived on a free deal, took his assist tally to 10 for the season.
Rounding off Celtic’s Australian trio is Harry Kewell, one of the first team coaches at the club.
The league triumph is Kewell’s first piece of silverware as a coach and here’s hoping it is the first of many.
Aaron Mooy helped Celtic to a second-consecutive Scottish Premiership title. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Fans of Northampton Town were singing Jon Brady’s praises long into the night as the Australian boss led the team to League One.
A 1-0 win over Tranmere Rovers on the final day of the League Two season helped Northampton Town achieve automatic promotion, but Brady earned widespread praise on social media for his post-match interview.
Speaking with Sky Sports’ Michelle Owen, Brady was on the verge of tears when he opened up about the sacrifices he and his family have made in his managerial career.
Brady also touched on the tragic death of his goalkeeping coach’s wife.
Fellow Aussie Tete Yengi was an unused substitute in the Cobblers’ win.
Jon Brady celebrates guiding Northampton Town to promotion. (Photo by Pete Norton/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
CLEAN SHEETS KEEP COMING FOR SOCCEROOS STOPPER
Mat Ryan’s impressive form at Dutch side AZ Alkmaar continued as the Socceroos skipper kept a clean sheet for his team against Ajax.
The scoreless draw made it four consecutive clean sheets in all competitions for Ryan who continues to impress.
Ryan made a crucial save from close range to deny Ajax striker Brian Brobbey to preserve the clean sheet as AZ sit just two points away from a Europa Conference League berth.
MAGIC MO MAKES DEBUT
Mohamed Toure became the latest Australian star to log minutes in a top five European league after making his debut for Ligue 1 outfit Reims.
The 19-year-old came off the bench in the 84th minute and helped Reims to a 1-0 win over Lille.
Reims’ win kept them in 10th spot in Ligue 1 and are now nine points off Lille who occupy a Europa Conference League qualifiers spot.
Leicester fall back into relegation zone | 01:01
ELSEWHERE AROUND THE GROUNDS …
Socceroos midfielder Jackson Irvine helped FC St Pauli to a much-needed 3-0 win over 2. Bundesliga leaders SV Darmstadt.
The result keeps St Pauli in fourth, only four points behind Hamburger SV in third.
Over in Japan, goalkeeper Mitch Langerak kept a clean sheet for Nagoya Grampus in a 1-0 win over Gamba Osaka as Nagoya went into second spot on the J1 League ladder.
In England, Massimo Luongo and Cam Burgess got the promotion party started as Ipswich Town drew 2-2 with Fleetwood Town on the last day of the League One season.
Both played the full 90 minutes as the Tractor Boys came back from 2-1 down to secure a result and finish their season strongly.
Manchester City are closing in on a fifth Premier League title in the last six seasons. With four games to play, City leads Arsenal by a point with a game in hand.
Unbeaten in 13 league games now – with 12 wins in that run – Pep Guardiola’s men are firm favourites to see off what has been an impressive title challenge from Mikel Arteta’s young Arsenal team.
Watch the world’s best footballers every week with beIN SPORTS on Kayo. LIVE coverage from Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Carabao Cup, EFL & SPFL. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
Another league crown would cement this City team as one of the most dominant dynasties in Premier League history.
Since Pep Guardiola’s arrival to the blue half of Manchester in 2016, the Catalan coach has claimed four league crowns and the same number of Carabao Cups, plus an FA Cup and two FA Community Shields.
That’s 11 trophies in seven seasons. For all their success, however, City has still failed in their ultimate goal – to assert their dominance as the best club in Europe by claiming the UEFA Champions League.
On Wednesday morning (5am AEST), they face Real Madrid in the first leg of the semi-finals, a rematch of last year’s final four match-up.
With City already into the FA Cup final, where they will face Manchester United on June 4 (AEST), Guardiola’s side is closing in becoming just the second side in Premier League history to claim that treble after United in 1999.
It would be the crowning achievement in a supremely successful era – and would silence one of the club’s most dogged and long-running criticisms, that for all their domestic success they have failed to deliver in Europe.
But another criticism won’t be silenced so easily: that City, owned by ultra-rich Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi’s royal family since 2008, has breached financial rules – or flat-out committed fraud – to spend their way to victory.
Here’s why City are perfectly placed to finally answer the first critique – and why the second won’t be answered for months, if not years.
YEARS OF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FAILURE AND THE PEP CURSE
For all the silverware they’ve amassed and the records they’ve demolished at the domestic level, Pep Guardiola’s Champions League record in charge of City has been perpetually underwhelming.
In Guardiola’s first season in Manchester, City was ousted in the last 16 by Monaco. The following three seasons they failed to get beyond the quarter finals. In 2021, the club’s great continental dream finally seemed to be in reach when they reached the final – only to lose to Chelsea.
And last year, they reached the semi-finals and were arguably the better team in two legs against Real Madrid, only to somehow fall to defeat 6-5 on aggregate. Guardiola’s side led 5-3 on aggregate heading into the final minute of regulation time before conceding twice to Rodrygo in quick succession, before Karim Benzema struck a penalty in extra time.
It was another ugly chapter in a long line of Champions League collapses under Guardiola – and one that stretched back to the coach’s time at Bayern Munich and even to Barcelona, where he twice won the much-coveted trophy.
Is Guardiola cursed?
11 times he has been knocked out of the Champions League. In eight of those exits, his team has conceded multiple goals in quick succession – a truly damning statistic.
City was dumped out in 2017 after two Monaco goals in eight minutes. They copped three in 19 minutes from Liverpool the year later. It was two in three minutes at the hands of Spurs in 2019, and two in eight minutes from Lyon in 2020. But last year was worst of all – three Madrid goals in six minutes as Manchester collapsed in staggering style.
Manchester City fell at the final hurdle in the 2021 Champions League final against Chelsea. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
In big European games, City panic time and time again. In the dying stages against Madrid last year, the English heavyweights resorted to desperately pumping long balls forward.
It was the very antithesis of everything Guardiola has created at City – cool and calm, relentless in their pursuit of perfection, and dedicated completely to their brand of total football.
While the players have lost their heads across the years, so too has their great mastermind Guardiola. All too often, Guardiola has tinkered with his selections, his tactics and formations in the big games, overthinking the threat posed by his rivals rather than trusting in the systems he has spent years refining to ever-greater levels.
Whether the players or the manager are more to blame for their repeated Champions League failures is up for debate.
But it is clear that both are equally motivated to end that streak.
For Guardiola, it would be a first continental triumph since 2010-11 and a third overall, taking him alongside legends Alex Ferguson, Zinedine Zidane and Bob Paisley with three total Champions League or European Cup wins.
Only Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has more, having already won two Champions League trophies with Real Madrid (2013-14 and 2021-22) and two with AC Milan (2002-03 and 2006-07).
Ancelotti and Guardiola are polar opposites, in many ways, though they both stand among the greatest coaches of the modern age.
Guardiola and Ancelotti have shared several battles over the years. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Where Guardiola is a great visionary, a football purist dedicated to his game-changing evolution of juego de posición or ‘positional play’, Ancelotti is a pragmatist, able to adapt to the players and tools at his disposal.
Nine years ago, the managers met for the first time. Pep Guardiola was at Bayern Munich, where he took over a team that had won a continental treble the season prior. He guided them to a league title with seven games remaining – the earliest the Bundesliga had ever been sealed – before meeting Ancelotti’s Madrid in the semi-finals.
Then came what Guardiola called in his book the “biggest f***-up” of his career.
Munich had 80 per cent of possession in the first half of the first leg in Madrid, showing their trademark possession–based approach. They dominated for large periods of the game, but Ancelotti’s Madrid scored in simple style – Karim Benzema banging in off simple squaring ball after a counter-attack. That match finished 1-0.
Ahead of the return leg, Munich’s home ground where Madrid had never won in 10 attempts, the great overthinker Guardiola made his greatest mistake.
He had planned to play a 3-4-3 formation. But his team hadn’t played as a back three in months, so Guardiola decided instead to stick to a back four. After a stunning 5-2 league win, Guardiola made an 11th-hour switch to replace his intended 4-2-3-1 with a highly-aggressive 4-2-4.
Ancelotti famously got the better of Guardiola in an all-time rout back in 2014. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
It backfired in a staggering rout. Madrid scored three in 35 minutes, and finished 4-0 victors.
Guardiola was brutally criticised in the German media. He had abandoned his principles and paid the price. But even then, few would believe he would go so long without another Champions League crown.
The criticism that followed that day have echoed down the years, with every failed tactical tinkering or counterintuitive selection.
“With Pep Guardiola I have the feeling that he always wants to do something special in big games,” former Bayern Munich and Germany defender Lothar Matthaus told Sport Bild in 2020. “Barcelona had a DNA, a system he pulled through. Pep was successful there. With Bayern and City, he tried it over and over again with changes and failed again and again.
“He always wanted to show that he could do even better. I would like to tell him: Pep, you are a giant trainer – but please keep your system!
“I would describe it as egocentric. Yes, that’s a harsh word, but it is due to what he did.”
Perhaps there is reason to believe this time will be different to that 2014 semi-final failure, or last season’s semi-final when Ancelotti’s Madrid again got the wood over Guardiola.
The big difference has been the arrival of Erling Haaland.
Suddenly, Guardiola’s preference last season for a false nine, often deploying a midfielder in that position, was abandoned.
Erling Haaland has been in sensational goalscoring form this season. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Haaland is a genuine number nine, and he’s fundamentally changed City’s attack. His hold-up play allows City to play directly and escape pressure in their own half. His pace and perfectly-timed runs behind the defence stretch the lines and create space for the likes of midfield maestros Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan to exploit. And, perhaps more than anything else, his goals have changed City’s attack. All 51 of them so far, including a Premier League record 35.
Haaland has simplified City’s attack, precisely because his simplicity and efficiency – it is the same run time and again, with the same almost-inevitable outcome – is the perfect foil for City’s boundless creativity under Guardiola.
The pure number nine has tempered the visionary stylings of Guardiola. It might just be the answer to Ancelotti’s pragmatic brilliance – and the cure to City’s Champions League curse.
‘FINANCIAL DOPING’ AND QUESTIONS STILL UNANSWERED
It is remarkable to think that Erling Haaland cost City just €60 million after they activated his Borussia Dortmund release clause and beat out a host of rival European giants for his signature.
Compare that to the other big-money attacking signings this season: Chelsea’s Mykhailo Mudryk for £89m, Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez (£64m rising to £85m), Spurs’ Richarlison (£60m), or Manchester United’s Antony (£85m).
Mudryk has no league goals this season in 13 appearances. Nunez has nine in 29. Antony – a winger rather than a number nine – has five goal involvements in 22 matches. Richarlison has 1 goal in 24.
Haaland has more than that lot combined, proof that his transfer fee wasn’t even close to his true value. But that is the case with many of City’s signings down the years – and a big reason why one of the great criticisms levelled against them is not true.
Rival fans have claimed that, ever since City was bought by Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi’s royal family in 2008, the club has spent its way to victory. In the early days, there was no shortage of big-money transfers as they outspent their rivals.
But as rival clubs have also received cash injections from ultra-rich owners, City’s transfer spending has been far from the biggest.
Sheikh Mansour has overseen an extraordinary amount of spending since taking ownership of the club in 2008. (Photo by Francois Nel/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Since Guardiola took charge in 2016, City has spent £1.074bn. That’s less than Manchester United, who have spent £1.077 billion. But when it comes to net transfer spending, the difference is staggering.
City’s net spend is £478million, while United’s net spend over the last seven years is a whopping £835m. That’s because City have turned players into superstars – often doubling their transfer value – before cashing in.
This season, that included Raheem Sterling for around £51 million, and Gabriel Jesus for £47m – and both went to direct rivals!
In the last five seasons, City’s spend has been significantly behind some of their Premier League rivals. According to Football 365, they were 10th in net spend over the last five seasons, with a net spend of £224.97m. Chelsea, after their staggering spending spree this season, have the highest net spend in that time – £654.21m.
Manchester United’s net spend of £540.23m is second, ahead of the likes of top six heavyweights Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham. Even Aston Villa, Wolves, Newcastle and West Ham have bigger net spends in the last five years.
Manchester City’s net spend debunks one of football’s biggest myths. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
It is obvious that City spent plenty of money to build their squad, but their recent transfer spending is certainly no higher than their rivals. Nor is their wage bill, this season at least. According to FBref, their wage bill is just the third-highest behind Man United and Chelsea – and by some distance.
Pep Guardiola said in 2020 that his club needed to invest in order to win the league – but said that plenty of other teams were spending too.
“Listen – a lot of clubs invested. (Manchester) United, Arsenal – in periods before winning the leagues – invested more money than the other ones. When Chelsea started to win Premier Leagues, they invested more money than the other ones,” Guardiola said.
“I’m a good manager but I don’t win titles if I don’t have good players and good players are expensive. All the clubs spend a lot of money: Barcelona spend a lot of money, Madrid spend a lot of money, English teams spend a lot of money.
“If we build the club, in terms of the last decade, to compete with the elite of the Premier League or Champions League, we need to invest.”
But there is more to the picture than transfers and wages. City’s boundless financial reserves last week saw them add a 12th affiliate club to the City Football Group, this time Brazilian club Baha. This has allowed them to either develop players and funnel them to the Premier League or use their attack-minded affiliate clubs as perfect loan destinations for promising youngsters to develop in the City tactical style.
Guardiola knows City must continue to invest in the playing squad to keep challenging for trophies. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
But not everyone is happy with the multi-club system. This weekend, City’s Belgian club Lommel SK was accused of receiving ‘foreign subsidies’ – reportedly around £15m in investment from City’s owners – since their takeover in 2020. The allegations came from a rival Belgium club, Royal Excelsior Virton, who labelled Lommel a “State Club” benefiting from “financial doping” and have taken them to court.
It’s not the first time that City Football Group has been the subject of claims over their finances – both from rival fans and from lawyers.
UEFA, European football’s governing body, in 2020 banned Manchester City from the Champions League for two years and hit them with a €30m fine for ‘serious breaches’ of Financial Fair Play. City were found to have lied about sponsorship revenue between 2012 and 2016, overinflating the amount they were receiving in order to ensure that their club spending was within those FFP limits.
City, furthermore, failed to co-operate with the investigation.
But City took the ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and succeeded – partially because UEFA rules put a five-year limit on matters that can be investigated. CAS found that an alleged payment that would constitute a serious breach happened before this time. The alleged breach in this case was that City’s owner used his own personal company Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG) to pay a whopping £30m on behalf of their sponsor Etisalat in 2012 and 2013. This was put down as a ‘sponsorship’ payment, rather than investment from the owner.
City face an uncertain future due to their finances. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
In fact, UEFA claimed that Etisalat had not even concluded a contract with City until 2015. City’s defence was that Etisalat reimbursed ADUG that amount in 2015, and the earlier amounts had been invoiced to Etisalat (not ADUG) – despite no formal deal being in place.
Another major claim of FFP breaches came from a series of leaked internal City emails, published by German news outlet Der Spiegel in 2018. The club’s financial officers of the time wrote that Etihad – the Abu Dhabi airline being the club’s top sponsor – was in fact only paying £8m of sponsorships worth £35m (2012-13), £65m (2013-14) and £67.5m (2015-16) seasons.
The rest was coming from ADUG. Again, City’s owner was allegedly paying ‘sponsorship’ money from his own company to inflate the club’s finances – and get around Financial Fair Play rules.
City refused to co-operate with the UEFA investigation and share any more evidence around the matter, however. Their appeal succeeded at CAS – but didn’t stop the rumblings from rival fans and clubs.
When the news was announced, Guardiola doubled down on his repeated claims of City’s innocence. He said in 2020 after the CAS verdict: “We can spend as much money as our chairman or our owners want, but always, always in the Financial Fair Play rules and we showed it. We were exonerated for something we were accused of all the time.
“I don’t want to apologise for anything. I’m sorry guys. Manchester City don’t have (to) apologise because three independent judges decided we have done everything properly. It’s clear – more than clear.”
Everton thrash Brighton in important win | 01:16
This year, however, everything changed. The Premier League, having investigated the club for four years, charged City with over 100 breaches of its own Financial Fair Play rules.
The Premier League’s case was almost a mirror image of the UEFA legal actions – alleging City lied about their financial position and sponsorship deals, and then refused to co-operate with the Premier League investigation. It was also alleged that City was secretly paying managers more than they were reporting.
But the alleged breaches stretched from 2009 all the way to 2018 – a period in which they won three league titles, including under Guardiola. And, unlike UEFA and the CAS verdict, the Premier League case is not ‘time-barred’. There is no statute of limitations on this case.
But it’s not just about Financial Fair Play, and whether City should have been spending so much money on their stadium, their squad, their wages, and so on.
As UEFA’s former chief investigator Yves Leterme in February told the Belgian broadcaster Sporza, he is “convinced fraud has been committed by Manchester City”.
The consequences could be massive. City could be handed a points deduction (for the current season when the decision is made). They could be banned from signing players – and the reputational damage could cost them plenty of sponsors. They could be forced to pay fines or compensation. Then come the bigger potential punishments. Relegation is possible. Titles may be stripped, though this appears unlikely. And the club could even be expelled from the Premier League, an extreme and highly unlikely punishment.
The process is still ongoing – after a four-year investigation, it is expected that the private hearings before an independent commission could take another year. We won’t hear anything until the verdict is handed down – and even then, either side can still appeal.
Keeper howler haunts Man Utd! | 00:48
So what if City win the treble, becoming just the second team in English history to do so (Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United in 1999)?
They can finally deliver the club and its cashed-up owners the trophy they desire most, and etch their names into the history books.
They can answer all the questions about Guardiola’s tinkering and overthinking, and the Catalan coach can get revenge for his “biggest f***-up.”
But until the allegations of fraud and FFP breaches are decisively proven one way or another, a dark cloud will hang over one of the greatest dynasties in English football history.
