As if the increasing probability of having to make do with silver or bronze in the title race were not enough, Manchester City face a levy on some of their gold.
UEFA are finally to enforce Financial Fair Play and it is understood that the pride of Abu Dhabi, along with Qatar’s Paris St Germain, are among those to be sanctioned.
This will come as no surprise. City have wildly exceeded the limit of a 45million loss over the two seasons to 2012-13 — title-winner Sergio Aguero was one of their captures — while PSG blew far more than their allowance on the likes of Lucas Moura, for whom they emphatically outbid Manchester United, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
If these two were not punished, the great innovation of the Michel Platini era would be seen as mere words. But let’s see what Uefa do about curbing the “reckless spending and financial insanity” that the charismatic Frenchman, thrice European Footballer of the Year, made one of his priorities upon being elected president in 2007.
Platini’s intention was to discourage sugar daddies and Roman Abramovich, who knew he would have completed his spree before the regulations became operational, thoroughly approved.
The last thing Chelsea’s owner wanted was to have to keep going, to match City and PSG as well as such traditional forces as United, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich. He had timed his arrival in England rather well.
Meanwhile, Arsenal expanded their cake with the construction of Emirates Stadium and Arsene Wenger looked forward to vindication of his long game. The bigger your stadium earnings, the bigger FFP lets you budget, and Arsenal, like United, could expect the benefit of this.
But they will feel a little let down if City and PSG are just slapped on the wrist in the form of a fine rather than, say, subjected to a transfer embargo.
The offenders here are not the story. The teeth of the policy are.
