Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca says the club's titles are "absolutely not" tainted after they were found guilty of the majority of the 115 charges brought against them by the Premier League. Maresca reiterated his faith in the club's owners and belief that they will win their appeal against the verdict during a news conference on Friday dominated by questions on the matter. The Italian, notably relaxed as he offered his responses, rejected the suggestion City's titles have been tainted by the ruling, as he knows "exactly the effort that the club put in to achieve" them.
An independent commission found Manchester City guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons. The club have appealed against the verdict and claimed in a statement the commission's ruling contained "clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe". Preparing to play their first match since that verdict was announced, away to rivals Liverpool on Sunday, Maresca said in an in-house interview on Thursday the "feeling is fantastic" among his players and they are not affected by "the noise" surrounding the club.
He added on Friday: "The reason I joined this club is that I completely trust, 100%, the owner, the CEO, the sporting director, all the organisation. So I don't have doubt about that. "I spoke with the club for sure.
We all trust, and probably the right moment to speak about that is when we are going to win this appeal." He added: "For me, the players - we can control just the pitch side, the football side. So we are focused on that. This is what we can do and what we can control." Appointed as Pep Guardiola's successor in June, Maresca is in his third spell at the club following time spent with the academy and as Guardiola's assistant coach - including during the Treble-winning 2022-23 campaign.
The 46-year-old has won each of his first five Premier League games in charge of City, and could become the fourth manager to win his first six of a spell in charge of a club in the competition at Liverpool on Sunday. The announcement of the verdict reached by an independent panel, which found City guilty of 'sham' contracts and misleading accounts as part of a scheme to disguise secret funding of more than £830m, means Maresca's side will expect to receive an even more hostile reception than usual at Anfield. Asked if he had any concerns over the atmosphere during the match, Maresca said: "It will be a tough game, for sure.
We need to be ready, the focus needs to be about the game, but we know the environment at Anfield. "It probably will be worse because of the situation but, again, it will be our duty to do our best and try to win the game. "The reason I decide to become manager is for this type of game." Maresca thanked one journalist who asked a question not related to the verdict, confirming talisman Erling Haaland is "ready" to play against Liverpool after recovering from his efforts for Norway during the international break in Marbella.
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