This is a team who have practically no chance of meeting UEFA financial fair play rules anyway, though they may get away with a slap on the wrist after it became apparent that UEFA can give them a light censure for non compliance.
But they have more to worry about after losing in the Champions League group stage. City have a bigger problem. If they get into the competition next year, as seems probable at the moment, it has been widely assumed they’ll get an easier draw than this year.
Not so. City, thanks to UEFA’s coefficient formula, can be no higher than 32nd in the rankings at the end of this season. They can gain a maximum of three points more in the rankings, and only if they get to the Europa League final, which would take them up to the spot just behind Bordeaux.
The top eight in the rankings are; Manchester United, Barcelona, Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Liverpool, Real Madrid, Porto. It is plausible that two of the English sides in the top eight may miss out, but if they do then Tottenham Hotspur would probably be in the competition – and they are, and will be, ahead of Man City regardless of if they win the Europa League.
Then there is Inter Milan, who probably won’t qualify as things stand, followed by AC Milan, Werder Bremen, Shakhtar Donetsk, Valencia and Benfica all likely to qualify next year before we get to Tottenham in 17th. Then PSV, CSKA Moscow, Sporting Lisbon, Dynamo Kiev and Zenit St. Petersburg are likely to qualify. Either Olympique Marseille or Olympique Lyonnais are also probable Champions League qualifiers. In total, this makes about 18 teams already.
Manchester City will be next in line, but this is quite a positive guess from their point of view, assuming the likes of Inter Milan, Sevilla and Roma miss out. The likelihood right now is that City will once again be in the third pot of seeds for next year, and facing an equally tough draw as this year, potentially worse.
For Roberto Mancini’s side, this is cause for concern. They have shown no sign of being able to qualify from a group stage this season. They beat a weak Villarreal twice, and a Bayern Munich side without all of their main players. They lost over two games to Napoli and were awful in Munich.
City have some way to go still, and they may have more years ahead without making it into the second pot of seeds for a Champions League draw. To get a good draw next year, they need a nice slice of luck. Without that, more toil in Europe’s top competition awaits, and possibly more nights on Channel 5.
