Liverpool and three other Premier League clubs have taken steps towards registering compensation claims if Man City are found guilty amid their 115 charges for breaching financial rules.
The Reds, Man United, Arsenal and Tottenham have all “taken the step of formally registering possible compensation claims via arbitration,” reports the Times.
They each lodged their notices before the potential statute of limitations deadline, which required clubs to reserve their right to challenge in advance if City are found guilty.
This negates the risk of any proposed lawsuit being outdated once the independent regulatory commission have reached a verdict, which is not expected until the new year.
The report notes that the “clubs involved all declined to comment,” explaining that the compensation notices were served after advisement from lawyers of the six-year statute of limitations (November 2018).
The Times add that, “if the charges against City are proven, clubs could claim for loss of income for missing out on the league title, qualification for the Champions League or other European competitions over the course of several seasons, which could total hundreds of millions of pounds.”
The charges against are between the period of 2009 and 2018. Liverpool, of course, came second in 2013/14 to City, while Tottenham and Arsenal missed out on top four spots.
Man United, meanwhile, finished second on two occasions (2011/12 and 2017/18) as City lifted three titles during the years under investigation.
English football, and the Premier League, face an unprecedented situation if City are found guilty, and the legal battles will not stop there with the abovementioned clubs signalling their intent.
Liverpool are right to pursue action, but we will have to wait and see what that could look like.
