Pochettino Questions Man City's 114 Guilty Verdicts

Mauricio Pochettino has questioned how Manchester City's alleged financial rule breaches were allowed to happen for so long, arguing that no punishment can fully repair the damage caused to clubs that followed the rules.

The former Tottenham manager was speaking after reports that an independent commission found Manchester City guilty of 114 of the 115 Premier League charges brought against the club over alleged financial breaches between 2009 and 2018.

Pochettino's biggest concern was not simply what punishment City eventually receive, but why the Premier League's controls failed to prevent the situation in the first place.

“Where were the controls? That's what gets my attention. Where were the controls?” he told The Guardian.

The Argentine recalled his time at Tottenham, particularly the period when Spurs went 18 months without making a senior signing while building their new stadium.

Pochettino believes clubs such as Tottenham were operating under much stricter financial constraints while competing against teams that may not have been following the same rules.

“They were so strict with us but also so lenient with others,” he said.

That led Pochettino to question whether Tottenham and other clubs had been competing on an equal footing.

He also argued that whatever punishment City eventually receive cannot simply erase what happened during the seasons under investigation.

“Whatever punishment they choose, it's impossible to turn back time,” Pochettino said. “It's done a lot of damage.”

The USMNT head coach went further when discussing the broader impact on the Premier League.

“At the end of the day, many clubs followed the rules and some didn't,” he said.

Pochettino added that if the reported findings are ultimately upheld, football had gone through “a period of deception” and that sporting fairness had not existed during that period.

The comments are particularly significant given Pochettino's years competing against City with Tottenham, when his side repeatedly challenged near the top of the Premier League while operating under tighter financial restrictions.

However, City's case is not yet completely finished. The full written commission decision has not been published, sanctions have not been determined and City have maintained that the Premier League process remains ongoing.

For Pochettino, though, the bigger question is whether any eventual punishment can repair the competitive damage that may already have been done.

“How do you repair everything that was damaged because of that?” he asked.