Tony Pulis: 'I feel cheated' after Manchester City found guilty of financial breaches
Tony Pulis said he felt cheated after news broke on Friday that Manchester City had been found guilty of breaking the majority of the 115 financial rules they have been accused of, remarks he made to BBC Sport as Manchester City are expected to appeal.
Pulis described taking Stoke City to the 2011 FA Cup final at Wembley as one of the highlights of his 50 years in football, recalling the sight of the Stoke end draped in red and white and the supporters singing Delilah. He said many fans travelled from around the world and that the occasion was especially poignant for the Coates family — Peter, Denise and John — who have long helped finance the club. That match in May remains, he wrote, a day smaller clubs and their supporters dream about.
Stoke lost the 2011 final 1-0 to Manchester City after Yaya Touré scored the winning goal, a game in which Pulis said his side were up against a team of superstars and an elite coach in Roberto Mancini. Pulis noted reporting that Touré was earning 10 times what Stoke were paying any of their players and that, when City signed him from Barcelona in 2010, he had cost more than Stoke’s entire starting XI; Touré had joined City for around £24m in July 2010.
Writing about his reaction now, Pulis said his original disappointment at losing was superseded by the new context, because City have been found guilty of breaching the financial rules set out by the Premier League and their successes between 2009 and 2018 have affected many clubs. He added that those results allowed Manchester City to accumulate numerous trophies and to dominate English football for more than a decade.
"Well, I know all Stoke supporters will be demanding that City pass the trophy over and every club that has been affected by their actions will be considering their legal options. I don't expect Manchester City to phone me or the club up and offer back the 2011 FA Cup and the winners' medals their players received. I don't seriously believe any other trophies and titles will be handed back over either. A points deduction and a massive fine feels far more likely. But I still feel cheated. Whatever happens next, we won't ever get that day back and the chance to celebrate around Stoke-on-Trent with the cup and medals we so honestly fought for. After breaking the rules, Manchester City got to do that instead." Tony Pulis was speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan.
Manchester City paraded the FA Cup around Manchester after beating Stoke in the 2011 Cup final; that triumph was their first major trophy since the 1976 League Cup.
Manchester City are expected to appeal the verdict, and Pulis said clubs affected by City's conduct will consider their legal options.
