UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has voiced strong support for Manchester City’s ownership group, admitting that he would be “really concerned to lose them” following the club’s high-profile guilty verdict for Premier League financial rule breaches
Speaking on the developments surrounding the club, the former Mayor of Greater Manchester in a chat with BBC, expressed deep gratitude to the City Football Group for their massive financial contributions and infrastructure investments across the city and around the Etihad Stadium campus.
Read Also:Hamburg Coach Offers Update On Moffi’s Injury
Burnham publicly thanked the club’s ownership for transforming modern Manchester, emphasizing that their impact extended far beyond football.
When asked about speculation that the owners might look to sell up in light of the independent commission’s findings, Burnham admitted his anxiety over a potential departure.
“I would be really concerned to lose them,” he said when asked by the BBC if he was worried about them selling the club.
“They’ve been such a huge partner in the building of modern Manchester. Obviously, the building of Manchester City into the global force that it is.
“Oh indeed. I do actually thank the City Football Group and the wider ownership for the money that they didn’t just put into the Etihad and the campus around it but also into the city, but yes of course.
Read Also:Ex-Man United Star Smalling Joins FC Porto On Free Transfer
“I have to keep my distance from it. It would be wrong for me to do anything else. It’s an independent legal process that has to play its course through … There’s a lot at stake. Let’s be honest about that, for the football club, for city supporters, for the city of Manchester.
“I remember people proclaiming Everton guilty at the time and with hindsight I think more people would say that wasn’t fair, the way that was handled. So it would be wrong of me to leap to one side given the experience that I’d had before becoming Prime Minister.”
While drawing on his past experiences defending his own club, Everton, through financial scrutiny, the Prime Minister stressed that he must maintain political neutrality and avoid directly interfering with ongoing football disciplinary processes.
