Wayne Rooney believes Manchester City players had no knowledge of any financial wrongdoing as the club faces severe disciplinary action, though the former Manchester United striker maintains his former club should not inherit retrospective Premier League titles.
Manchester City has faced a disciplinary process following a Premier League investigation initiated in 2023, which examined 115 alleged breaches of financial regulations between 2009 and 2018. While the club was found culpable in 114 of those 115 cases, including charges of failing to cooperate with investigators during the proceedings, club officials have consistently denied all allegations of wrongdoing.
https://x.com/TheAthleticFC/status/2104903853954982245
Wayne Rooney opposes retroactively awarding Premier League medals to Manchester United
The verdict has reignited debate among former Manchester United players regarding the 2011–12 Premier League season, when City claimed the title on goal difference ahead of United. Former United players Rio Ferdinand and David de Gea both suggested in public remarks that United should receive the 2011–12 championship retroactively if City is stripped of its honors.
Rooney, who won five Premier League titles, rejected the idea in an interview on the podcast Stick to United. “To be honest, it wouldn’t be right to get that medal because I don’t think we deserved it. We simply didn’t do enough that season to win the league,” Rooney said. He added that accepting a retroactive medal would bring him no comfort, emphasizing that United fell short on the pitch during that campaign.
Protecting players and advocating for sporting sanctions
Defending the current generation of City players, Rooney argued that they earned their success through on-field performance without awareness of administrative infractions occurring above them. “I think their players did everything they could to win the Premier League and in their minds, they did. They didn’t have the slightest idea what was going on above them,” Rooney said. “If it happened to me, if Manchester United had done the same thing and out of nowhere they took my Premier League medals away, I would be absolutely devastated.”
Despite his reluctance to strip past players of their medals, Rooney voiced support for stringent sporting punishments against the club itself. He proposed relegation to the lowest league alongside strict financial expenditure caps covering a three-to-four-year window. The ongoing proceedings continue to shape English football as governing bodies weigh appropriate sanctions for historical financial rule breaches.
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