Christian Purslow, a former chief executive of Aston Villa and managing director of Liverpool, has warned that Manchester City's legal battle with the Premier League could "spiral out of control" — triggering a chain of events he described as "appalling for the game."

City have been found guilty of the vast majority of 115 charges brought by the Premier League, relating to alleged rule breaches that centred on inflated sponsorship revenue from connected companies and "off the books" payments designed to circumvent football's financial regulations.

The compensation question

Purslow, speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme alongside football law expert Paul Gilroy KC, outlined how compensation claims from rival clubs could accumulate to staggering sums. Gilroy described the verdict as a "seismic moment for world football" and confirmed that four clubs have already filed protective claims reserving their right to seek compensation.

Purslow explained: "If you look at every single season — the nine seasons which we now know Manchester City breached rules — then all of their 19 Premier League rivals in that season, to differing extents, suffered easy-to-compute loss. Whether it was a place in the Premier League — every place was worth £3m — or teams that came fifth and missed out on the UEFA Champions League, maybe losing tens of millions of pounds."

He added that teams relegated during those seasons may also have grounds to claim, noting that a club finishing 18th might have survived had City not been competing with an unlawful financial advantage. "If you add all those claims up, over nine years, and that's just in the Premier League, you can see that the potential here for this to spiral out of control is huge," he said.

Purslow called for a comprehensive settlement between football's authorities and Manchester City, warning that "a never-ending waterfall of legal claims and uncertainties for another four or five years would be absolutely appalling for the game."

Sanctions still to come

No official sanctions have yet been announced. Possible punishments include a points deduction, expulsion from the Premier League, or a substantial fine. BBC Sport understands City intend to appeal the verdict. Premier League clubs are also seeking independent legal advice regarding potential compensation.

The charges cover nine seasons and span the managerial tenures of Roberto Mancini and Manuel Pellegrini, as well as the first two years of Pep Guardiola's reign. During the period in question, City won eight trophies, including three Premier League titles, three EFL Cups, one FA Cup, and one Community Shield.

Reactions from inside the game

Former Manchester City chairman David Bernstein told Times Radio the news made him feel "absolutely awful." He acknowledged that any punishment, after appeal, would need to be "more drastic" than a financial penalty alone, and urged all parties to accelerate the process. "The appeal cannot go on year after year — that would be a disaster, not just for this case but for English football generally," he said.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy urged the Premier League to resolve the matter quickly, saying on BBC Radio 5 Live that the situation was "very unsettling for football fans" and that a swift resolution was needed — "not just for the sake of Manchester City but for the sake of football."

Musician and lifelong City supporter Noel Gallagher described the outcome as "quite sad" for players and fans alike. Speaking on the Let Me Talk podcast, the Oasis star said he was "a little surprised" given the club's repeated denials. "It was a bit of a shock to find out that we've been found guilty of all but one," he said.

Manchester City declined to comment on the verdict, instead issuing a statement saying the Premier League process "remains ongoing with significant elements to be completed" and noting that the club had "diligently respected due process for eight years."