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Former Aston Villa chief executive Keith Wyness has suggested the protracted delay in Manchester City's 115 charges case could be attributed to those overseeing proceedings being occupied with other matters. City were charged in February 2023 with breaching financial regulations across a nine-year span from 2009 to 2018, alongside additional allegations of failing to co-operate with the Premier League's investigation.

Three years since the club was initially charged, City and the Premier League continue to await the final ruling on the potential violations, which some reports suggest actually number as many as 130, for supposedly contravening financial regulations from 2009 to 2018 - a timeframe during which City secured three league titles. An independent panel examined the case in December 2024 following a 12-week tribunal. Yet the independent commission has still to deliver its verdict. City have refuted any wrongdoing and are understood to be confident of exoneration.

Discussing the case, Wyness suggested the delay has dragged on for far too long and highlighted possible reasons behind it. "I read a very interesting appraisal of the situation from a legal source," he told Football Insider. "They were saying that basically they believe that the judges have not had the right time, and they've been busy on other cases and that's the only reason behind it.

"I question that. I still think that there's a settlement of some sort being tried to be worked out and how they're going to handle the actual outcome. So look, we all know it's dragged on for too long. If this is the legal situation, that it is just the judges being too busy, then I'm afraid that's not good enough either."

Wyness' remarks are purely speculative on his part, rather than any confirmed explanation for the delay. Should City be found guilty of the potential breaches, however, precedent indicates that sporting sanctions would be the primary form of punishment.

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Pep Guardiola has long maintained that he would walk away if he discovered City's owners had deceived him regarding their financial affairs. "Why did I defend the club and the people? It's because I work with them," Guardiola previously said on the matter. "When they are accused of something I ask them: 'Tell me about that.'

"They explain and I believe them. I said to them: 'If you lie to me, the day after I am not here. I will be out and I will not be your friend any more. I put my faith in you because I believe you 100% from day one and I defend the club because of that.'"

Potential sanctions facing City - should they be found guilty - that are currently being mooted range from fines to being stripped of titles and substantial points deductions severe enough to trigger the club's relegation from the top flight.

City remain embroiled in the Premier League title battle with Arsenal with merely a fortnight remaining of the season. Heading into the weekend, five points divide the teams after Guardiola's outfit surrendered points at Everton on Monday, although they possess a match in hand against Crystal Palace which takes place next week.

Should they prevail over Arsenal, the championship would represent City's fifth in six campaigns. A piece in The Lawyer characterises City's participation in the title contest as 'something of a nightmare' for the league, considering the perception surrounding the continuing case.

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They write: "English football now faces the very real - and awkward - possibility of the club being crowned champions at the same time as a tribunal finds it guilty of egregious rule breaches over many years. There is even a chance, albeit an incredibly unlikely one given the time left in the season, that City wins the league but receives a points deduction, handing the title to Arsenal.

"City competing for the title is now something of a nightmare for the Premier League. Like most arbitrations, the proceedings are confidential. That confidentiality and the 16-month wait has left rumours swirling and many scratching their heads about what is going on behind closed doors."