Manchester City’s quest for an unprecedented fifth Premier League title in a row will be fought amid a backdrop of their hearing into alleged breaches of financial rules which began on Monday.
The case is currently being heard in London and is expected to take around ten weeks, with the club denying all 115 charges which include accusations of failing to provide accurate financial information and manager remuneration covering a period between 2009 and 2018. Should City be found guilty, punishments could potentially include fines, point deductions or even the threat of relegation from the Premier League.
A verdict is not expected for some time, with either side having the option to appeal at the end of the case, so this will not be going away anytime soon. Pep Guardiola and his Manchester City squad do not appear to be too distracted by case, as they have won their opening four games in the Premier League, but one of City’s European rivals can perhaps smell blood.
That’s because former Real Madrid midfielder Guti has told his old side to make a move for Erling Haaland, who has begun the season in blistering fashion, netting nine goals in his four appearances so far this term. Speaking at a ‘Five Teams, Five Stars’ event, as per Mundo Deportivo on Monday, Guti discussed this summer’s signing of Kylian Mbappe, before moving on to the Norwegian, who he believes should be the club’s next target.
"It started well with the Super Cup but in the league, the draws [mean] there [is] a lot of noise outside,” the former Spain international said. “With the arrival of Kylian, he has to adjust certain things but he will improve as the days go by,
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"I would bring Haaland to Real Madrid. He's been outstanding for a few years now and I just hope he's Florentino's [Perez] next target. It would be very good for our football."
The plea comes following claims earlier this year from Spanish outlet AS that "if were up to [Haaland], he would sign for [Real] Madrid tomorrow," regarding a move to the Bernabeu. The publication previously claimed that Real Madrid were monitoring Haaland throughout their pursuit of Mbappe.
Guti has form in calling for Madrid to sign Haaland, having urged the club to do so in 2022 before the striker joined Manchester City from Borussia Dortmund. Haaland’s current deal at Manchester City runs until 2027, although reports have claimed in recent months that his contract contains a release clause of around £175million.
In FourFourTwo's opinion, a move for Haaland to the Bernabeu would be nothing short of sensational – and there's always potential for this to happen, given their might – but unless something dramatic happens to Manchester City, it'll happen on their terms. City are not in the business of losing their best players and will only consider letting Haaland leave when they're certain that it's the right decision for them.
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