In February 2023, the Premier League charged City with breaking more than 100 of its financial rules, with the alleged breaches covering the period between 2009 and 2018. The Etihad club have always denied all of the charges.
The hearing took place in front of an independent commission over 12 weeks between September and December, and now, according to David Ornstein of The Athletic, the verdict is expected in the springtime, and City are confident that they will be exonerated.
"It’s just over two years ago since those charges and the feeling I get from speaking to people at and around the club is that we could be looking at a springtime verdict," he told NBC Sports ahead of the game at the Etihad.
"So, maybe a month or two away and that feels pretty soon. Of course this is still subject to potential appeals in that process too, but the verdict would feel like a seismic moment whatever the outcome."
Ornstein then continued: "The important point to say from City’s perspective is that they are totally confident that they will be exonerated and prove their innocence, so they’re operating as usual.
"We saw them do a lot of business in the January transfer window. None of that business, to my knowledge, was to pre-empt potential punishment because they don’t think they are going to be punished for these alleged breaches.
"In the contract negotiations they’ve been holding in recent years, the transfer talks that have taken place, no clauses have been inserted into those deals to say ‘if City are punished, this is going to happen’. Players want to join Manchester City and they are continuing with everything that they are doing.
"It had no impact on Pep Guardiola signing a new contract in autumn, on Erling Haaland in the story I broke in January, on [sporting director] Txiki Begiristain’s decision to leave the club as sporting director - that was long-planned, or Hugo Viana’s decision to replace him.
"Think that they are going to be fined, let’s see how it materialises."
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