Manchester City were notified of their guilty verdicts in the summer — months before the findings were made public — and proceeded to invest heavily in the transfer market, sources have told ESPN.

The club had been found guilty of more than 100 breaches of the Premier League's financial rules, yet pushed ahead with significant transfer activity in the same window after learning of the outcome.

The revelation raises fresh questions about how City operated with knowledge of the panel's findings while remaining active in the market, a situation that is likely to intensify scrutiny of the club's conduct throughout the proceedings.