If Manchester City are guilty they have betrayed football as a spectacle

Sport only works if it is on some level real, credible and straight — any club that breaks the rules must be harshly punished

QUESTIONS TO ANSWER: Manchester City have been referred to an independent commission by the Premier League over alleged breaches of its financial rules. Pic: Martin Rickett/PA

Welcome back, then, to chapter two in the slow-burn but undeniably gripping story of Manchester City and the case of the financial regulations.

At times in the past three years it has been tempting to wonder whether the Premier League had quietly shelved its investigation into City’s internal affairs. But no. The sword of justice never sleeps; or at least, that blade is unlikely to remain sheathed for too long when there is money, football, power, influence, money, and above all money involved.