Across Manchester, a financial case that has shadowed the Etihad Stadium for years has taken a dramatic turn, with Manchester City found guilty on 114 of the 115 charges brought against them by the Premier League three years ago.
The accusations concern breaches of financial regulations, and the consequences now facing City may extend far beyond a fine. Sporting sanctions are also under consideration in what would be an unprecedented punishment for an English club, including the possibility that honours won between 2009 and 2018 could be removed.
That prospect drew a pointed response from Florence, where David De Gea is now playing for Fiorentina. The Madrid-born goalkeeper spent 12 years at Manchester United, having arrived in England from Atletico Madrid, and regularly faced City during the club’s rise across that period.
With unmistakable irony, the former Spain international suggested that any retrospective redistribution of trophies could alter his own record. “So, let’s talk. How many Premier League titles do I have then?” De Gea asked.
The remark captures the scale of the uncertainty around the case. Any decision to strip titles would reopen an era of English football that shaped the modern continental game, with City’s domestic success forming a major part of their ascent from Manchester to Europe’s elite.
