Ammon News - Manchester City's directors should step down after an independent commission found the Premier League club guilty of serious financial breaches, said former chairman David Bernstein, who described ​the situation as "beyond awful".

On Tuesday, the Premier League said City had used "sham" ‌commercial contracts as part of schemes to inflate revenue and understate costs by more than £900 million ($1.19 billion) over nearly a decade.

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The club, which denies wrongdoing, said in a statement it would appeal ​the ruling.

"I can't think of a penalty strong enough for this, really. ​I mean, this is absolutely terrible. I want to raise another question, ⁠and that is the position of the board of directors," Bernstein told talkSPORT ​after the announcement.

"Because the directors of the club, including the chief executive, who's been there ​for years and went through this through this period, are responsible for the running of the club in every respect.

"And again, if this was a public company of some sort, I think ​the directors with something as serious as this, would have to stand down or ​be suspended pending the outcome of all this ... appeal or no appeal.

"I don't think the present ‌management ⁠can credibly continue."

City did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours.

No sanction has yet been imposed on City, who have until Friday to lodge an appeal. The punishment could range from fines and a points deduction to relegation, ​but the saga ​could last for several ⁠more months.

"If it drags on for a year or two, heaven forbid, that would be the worst thing for everybody," said ​Bernstein, a lifelong City fan who was chairman from 1998 ​to 2003 ⁠and oversaw their return to the Premier League from the third tier of English soccer.

"... all I would say is that money (a fine) is not sufficient now.

"If these charges stand ⁠now ​and let's say the appeal does not happen or ​fails, then I'm afraid for the club I love, that they've got to come out of the ​Premier League. This is beyond awful."


Reuters