Tony Pulis says he and Stoke were 'cheated' out of 2011 FA Cup after Manchester City verdict

Tony Pulis has said he and Stoke City were "cheated" out of the 2011 FA Cup final after Manchester City were found guilty on virtually all counts of breaching Premier League financial rules, he wrote in a BBC Sport column following Friday’s verdict. Manchester City deny wrongdoing and are expected to appeal.

Stoke lost the 2011 FA Cup final 1-0 to Manchester City after Yaya Touré’s strike. The Premier League found City guilty on all but one of the more than 100 charges it laid in February 2023. The 68-year-old Pulis asked directly in his column: "When do we get our FA Cup?"

Pulis wrote: "I don’t expect Manchester City to 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."

He pointed to Manchester City's spending on Touré, noting the midfielder was signed from Barcelona for £24m and was reported to be earning around £180,000-a-week. "Yaya Touré, who scored the winning goal, was reportedly earning 10 times what we were paying any of our players and, on his own, had cost more than our entire starting 11 when they had signed him from Barcelona in 2010," Pulis wrote.

Reflecting on how the verdict has altered his feelings about the match, Pulis added: "My disappointment was buried in the fact we had played a team full of superstars, and faced an elite coach in Roberto Mancini, and had just fallen short. Today, I feel very differently, as I am sure people connected with the other clubs affected by City’s successes in the same period, between 2009 and 2018 [will feel]. "We lost, but to a team that have been found guilty of breaking the financial rules set out by the Premier League. In doing so, they did not just beat Stoke in an FA Cup final, they collected a stack of titles and went on to completely dominate English football for more than a decade. So, with those rules having been broken, what will the punishment be?"

Pulis also addressed potential responses from other clubs and supporters, saying: "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."

Manchester City responded through two voices on Saturday. Khaldoon al-Mubarak, the club’s chair, said: "There is so much noise swirling around us, nothing has changed. We have faced challenges together before and have prevailed. There remain many who want to undermine the momentum of our club. We will not give them that opportunity." A City spokesperson added: "The Premier League process remains ongoing, with significant elements to be completed, and subject to strict confidentiality. As such Manchester City FC’s position remains consistent with the club’s statement of February 2023. The club has diligently respected due process for eight years on the basis that the Premier League board and executive would behave as an independent, impartial and fair-minded regulator, free from partisan influence."

City are expected to lodge an appeal against the Premier League's findings and the club says the regulatory process is still ongoing, with substantial elements yet to be completed.