Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola has said the uncertainty surrounding Manchester City's guilty verdict for breaching Premier League financial rules is not good for football, calling for a swift conclusion to the case.
Speaking ahead of Sunday's match against Enzo Maresca's unbeaten league leaders at Anfield, Iraola acknowledged that the rest of the division must continue to trust those overseeing the process.
City's financial breaches detailed
The Premier League published its redacted 40-page core decision on September 29, revealing that City had artificially inflated commercial revenue by as much as £830m between 2009 and 2018. The club also downplayed losses of around £66m, with league chief executive Richard Masters saying the Etihad outfit had "systematically broke Premier League Rules for nearly a decade".
City appealed the decision on October 2, and a new independent commission is set to hear the case over a 12-week process without accepting new evidence. The Manchester club has always maintained its innocence, claiming there is "irrefutable evidence" regarding the legitimacy of the commercial revenue income.
Iraola's call for clarity
"I think it should be [concluded quickly]," Iraola said. "There should be a moment when something comes from this but now is not that moment. Nobody knows what is going to happen and I think this uncertainty is no good for anyone. I don’t know what’s going to happen. No-one knows what’s going to happen."
He added: "I think we have to trust the people who are in charge of those things. They have spent a lot of time (looking at the issue), no? So they are ones that the football world has put their trust in and they decide to make their decisions. The best thing for us is that we are focusing on the football and on the game, Liverpool v Man City."
Focus on the match
Iraola said he cannot control everything that happens above football, noting that every fan will have their own opinion. "I need to do my job, to give the best game we can give on the sporting side, so everyone of our supporters is happy on Sunday," he said.
He described the challenge of the game as big, saying that if the team does not give 100% it will be a really difficult game. "So all the players are very focused and everyone is willing to take on all the information to get us ready and win their duels, give their best performances because it is the only way we can win on Sunday."
Asked if he would use the City situation in his team talk, Iraola said he would use the atmosphere as he does every home game, to give the fans the game they want to see. "We know what they want to see: a team that gives everything; that fights for every ball; that is vertical and goes for the game from the beginning. And if we give them that game, then they will be us and that is what I would say."
