As the fallout from Manchester City's industrial-scale cheating continues and their appeal is awaited, one aspect may not have been reflected upon enough: how little the club got for its money, argues Mike Alhadeff in a letter to the Guardian.
Fine margins despite vast spending
Yes, there were six league titles in seven years and the "Centurions" team of 2017-18, all under Pep Guardiola. But a closer look shows City were run remarkably close on multiple occasions. Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool lost the title by one point twice, and Arsenal could conceivably have won the title earlier than they did, barring a few last-minute wobbles.
This is testament not only to the skill of the managers, but also to the tenacity of the teams they built. City won their first title only on goal difference, despite huge spending that is now known to have come from ill-gotten gains.
It highlights that you can cheat your way to glory with almost £1bn, but still only win by the finest of margins. It perhaps shows why the Premier League is still the most competitive league in the world, just.
Money's impact on player performance
Ed Barrett takes exception to a previous letter's claim that money did not enable City players to train harder or run faster. That is precisely what it did do, he says. By swelling City's coffers, the owners allowed the club to expand their squad, building both strength and depth. This allowed regular squad rotation without weakening the team, giving players more rest than at most other Premier League clubs.
As a Liverpool fan, Barrett is galled that many Liverpool players ran themselves into the ground to compete with City, shortening their careers. With City beating Liverpool to the title once by two points and twice by a single point, he asks whether there can be any doubt that the Reds were robbed of even greater success these efforts merited.
While Bryant said "City's victories were paid for with effort", Barrett says a considerable portion of that effort was paid for by cheating, and the efforts to counteract that cheating were paid for by other clubs, players and fans.
Call for measured tone
Neil Smith warns against the uncomfortable triumphalism in the media's rolling coverage of the verdict. While the independent commission's findings are historic, the rhetoric should be toned down. Breathless calls for unprecedented, disproportionate punishments ignore the harsh human reality of such a sanction.
Expelling a club from the top flight doesn't just impact wealthy owners or multimillionaire players. It devastatingly threatens the livelihoods of hundreds of ordinary, non-playing staff, from matchday stewards to kitchen workers. In the rush to see a football giant cast down, the media should remember the innocent people who will actually bear the consequences.
