Former Manchester City president David Bernstein calls for Premier League expulsion

Former Manchester City president David Bernstein says the club should be expelled from the Premier League if its appeal against serious financial charges fails.

Bernstein, who led Manchester City between 1998 and 2003, told the BBC on Tuesday that any punishment must go beyond a financial penalty, warning that the credibility of the entire competition was at stake.

“It is almost beyond belief in terms of how serious it is,” Bernstein said. “The first thing I think is: should the board continue? Should the people involved be suspended from their jobs immediately?”

He added: “It is very, very serious. I think it is really dreadful. There is a school of thought among lawyers which is denial, denial, denial, but this is a football club that belongs to a competition, and the credibility of the whole league is at stake here.”

Bernstein said the case could amount to something more serious than a breach of football regulations.

“I would go as far as saying it could represent an entrenched form of fraud,” he said. “If that is the case, I am not a lawyer, but in my view this is so serious that it goes beyond the football authorities.”

He also rejected the idea that any sanctions should be limited to financial measures.

“Penalties cannot be restricted to the financial side; they have to go much further than that,” Bernstein said.

“If the appeal fails, Manchester City cannot remain in the Premier League and must face the consequences. I say that as a supporter and someone who loves the club.”

Bernstein’s comments came after the Premier League formally found Manchester City guilty of serious financial violations. The club responded in an official statement by saying it had evidence to prove its innocence and would appeal against the decision.

The former Manchester City president’s intervention raises the prospect of sporting consequences rather than a punishment confined to a fine if the club’s appeal is unsuccessful. He argued that the issue affected the integrity of the competition as a whole, rather than being solely a dispute involving one club’s finances.