Manchester City players, including Erling Haaland, could be entitled to rip up their contracts after the club was found guilty of breaching 114 of the 115 charges brought by the Premier League, a barrister has explained.
Paul Gilroy KC appeared on the latest episode of Stick to Football, where he was joined by Gary Neville, Ian Wright, Jamie Carragher, Roy Keane and Jill Scott. He was asked by Wright how the ongoing case could affect the players in the City squad, including Haaland, Enzo Fernandez and Elliot Anderson.
Trust and confidence breach
Gilroy explained that every contract of employment, whether for a footballer or someone who works in a shop, has an implied term of trust and confidence. He said that if an employer breaches that term, a player could argue they are entitled to walk away.
"A player could say 'You have breached the implied term of trust and confidence. You are my employer, you have acted in breach of that term, and that entitles me to say I'm ripping up my contract and I'm walking out,'" Gilroy said.
Players' options and reaction
Gilroy noted that commentators have called such a move unlikely, but said it depends on many factors, including what the club says to players and how the situation is sorted out financially. He added that "arguably, it's certainly a possibility."
During the discussion, Carragher jokingly asked if Liverpool could sign Haaland for free next week, to which Gilroy replied, "Yeah, why not?" Wright then joked that Haaland might want to go to Arsenal "just because of his mates there."
City are still denying the charges and maintain their innocence, with the club expected to launch an appeal before the deadline on Friday. The Premier League listed four predominant areas explaining why City had been found guilty by an independent commission, including arranging 'sham' contracts with commercial partners between 2009 and 2018.
