Manchester City could lose more than just the big-name players on the pitch after being found guilty of breaching Premier League rules.
That is according to former Manchester City financial adviser Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider that, while it is too early to speculate, many will already be considering their futures.
After being found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges being levelled at the club by the Premier League, attention has turned to the potential punishment facing the Citizens.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, former Premier League board member Keith Wyness has predicted a 50-point deduction at the Etihad.
Should that become reality, relegation to the Championship would be almost certain, causing the likes of Erling Haaland and Enzo Fernandez to jump ship.
Keeping hold of these big-name stars would be a huge problem, made even worse by a potential transfer ban, and more exits could come from inside the club.
‘The Man City players will be selfish, but it won’t just be them’
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Borson has predicted a mass exodus if Man City are hit with a sporting penalty over the coming months.
“I don’t think we’re at that point yet, but you can’t rule out that, down the line, if the club suffers sporting penalty, which is I think likely…” he said.
“I don’t think it’s unlikely that players will be selfish and look for their own careers, and you would expect them to do so. It won’t just be players.
“It will be people that work in the club and everything else. That’s just the natural order of things. But we’re very early on. We need to actually see what’s been decided precisely, and to read the decision.
“And then we can start to piece together these bits, but at the moment, it’s still very early. If it’s to be believed in terms of the media coverage so far, there will be very, very negative consequences for Manchester City.”
Which Man City players would stay?
Dropping down to the Championship, at the very least, would be an incredible blow and a very difficult challenge for the Citizens.
But some players may view that challenge as exactly what they need for their careers, instead of jumping ship and sitting on the bench there.
It is difficult to see Phil Foden leaving his boyhood club, so there could potentially be a Jarrod Bowen-West Ham United repeat.
In addition to him, Nico O’Reilly, Rico Lewis, Allan and Ayyoub Bouaddi could all take the situation in their stride, while the likes of Josh Wilson-Esbrand and Ryan McAidoo would get much-needed game time.
