Javier Tebas has sarcastically claimed it is ‘incredible’ it has taken the Premier League years to bring charges against Manchester City.
LaLiga chief Tebas has been a vocal opponent to City’s spending and he publicly criticised the club at an event in Manchester in 2017.
Now, after City were charged with more than 100 rule breaches in their biggest ever scandal, Tebas took his opportunity to point out he had been way ahead of the curve.
He tweeted: ‘On 9-5-2017 we denounced in Soccerex Manchester the breaches of the @ManCity and @PSG_espanol of financial fair play.
‘It is incredible that the @premierleague took years to find out. We denounce that there are more cases, will it take so many years too?’
Tebas has been critical of City for years, claiming in 2020 that a ‘majority’ of people involved in European football were convinced City had breached Financial Fair Play.
That same year, in the February, City were handed a two-year ban from UEFA competition by the governing body upon allegations of FFP breaches.
Later that year, in July, City saw that sanction overruled and overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Following the CAS verdict, Tebas savaged them by claiming the court was now ‘dead’.
In June last year Tebas’ continued public battle against City and French giants Paris Saint-Germain saw him submit an official complaint to UEFA due to the ยฃ51m signing of Erling Haaland.
Speaking to Spanish outlet Marca, Tebas said: “[City] must have done something, because Haaland asked the clubs for more apart from the 60 million that have been paid.
‘PSG is going to end up with losses of 200 million, it has already been dragging 300… and they go and renew Mbappรฉ with those amounts.
‘They are going to have to cheat, I don’t know if paying outside the French environment or fattening up the sponsorships a lot, which they already do.’
Tebas is refusing to back down in his public criticisms and recently denounced the Premier League’s financial model following a record spend of ยฃ815m in the January window.
‘The Premier League market is a doped, inflated market, but LaLiga still has the best players and stars,’ Tebas told The Associated Press.
The latest update is potentially incredibly damning for City.
The charges against the reigning champions relate to financial information regarding revenue, details of manager and player remuneration, UEFA regulations, profitability and sustainability and co-operation with Premier League investigations.
A statement from the league said alleged breaches were committed from September 2009 to the 2017-18 season and will be referred to an independent commission.
It adds that the club is alleged to have breached league rules requiring provision ‘in utmost good faith’ of ‘accurate financial information that gives a true and fair view of the club’s financial position’.
Should Man City be found guilty, they face a range of potential sanctions including a points deduction or even an expulsion – though it could take years to come to a conclusion.
In a statement, Manchester City said it was surprised by the alleged breaches.
It read: ‘Manchester City FC is surprised by the issuing of these alleged breaches of the Premier League Rules, particularly given the extensive engagement and vast amount of detailed materials that the EPL has been provided with.
‘The Club welcomes the review of this matter by an independent Commission, to impartially consider the comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence that exists in support of its position.
‘As such we look forward to this matter being put to rest once and for all.’
City declined to comment beyond their statement. It is understood, however, that there is a view within the club that the timing of the charges do not come as a coincidence.