Noel Gallagher pleads for Man City NOT to be punished with club facing threat of relegation as superfan opens up on his ‘shock’ after learning of bombshell 115 verdict
Oasis superstar and Manchester City fan Noel Gallagher has pleaded for mercy after his club were found guilty of the vast majority of the 115 financial charges levelled against them.
Gallagher, alongside brother and bandmate Liam, is a big City fan and regularly attends games with his sons.
He is also close friends with former manager Pep Guardiola, and went into the club’s dressing room after they won the 2018-19 Premier League title.
Gallagher has been left reeling after it was revealed that City have been found guilty of the vast majority of the 115 financial charges against them – casting doubt on the legitimacy of their trophy-laden spell under the club’s Abu Dhabi ownership.
The Oasis songwriter revealed he has been left in ‘shock’ by the verdict, but implored football’s decision-making bodies not to punish the supporters or players for ‘whatever goes on in the boardroom’.
‘A little surprised because only that the club has assured us all along that they would vehemently deny any of these charges,’ he said on the Let Me Talk podcast.
‘So it was a bit of a shock to find out we’ve been found guilty of all but one but really overall quite sad really, sad for the fans and for the players.
Noel Gallagher, a close friend of Pep Guardiola, says the fans and players should not be punished after City were found guilty of the vast majority of the 115 charges
‘Our focus as fans is always on the pitch and we know what we saw: they won it on the pitch. Whatever goes on in the boardroom it’s nothing to do with the supporters or the players, the players won the game and won that (2011-12) title on the pitch.
‘Whether some of those players should have been there or not, that’s nothing to do with the fans. We were there, we know what we saw. Does it taint it? I suppose in the eyes of everybody else in England it would but I know what I saw and I know what I felt.’
City are set to appeal the decision but any punishment is now expected to follow, with some fans calling for the club to be stripped of the trophies they won at the time.
There had initially been confusion around the time period that the charges relate to, with the initial offences ranging from the 2009-10 season to the 2017-18 campaign.
There are then further charges surrounding failure to comply with the investigation, which range from December 2018 to February 2023.
It remains unclear what any punishment could be, though the threat of relegation appears a legitimate possibility.
Gallagher joked a fortnight ago that his ‘heart is full of pride’ after his 15-year-old son flipped his middle finger at Man United fans during City’s derby win at Old Trafford.
Sonny Gallagher celebrated alongside his brother Donovan, 18, and their Oasis rockstar father Noel, 59, in the stands 62 minutes into the game, with City a man down after Phil Foden’s red card.
The teenager flipped off rival fans in the stands and jeered as star striker Haaland netted in the second-half what later proved to be the winner.
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