POINTS DEDUCTION FOR MAN CITY: Forget Nottingham and Everton FFP cases, it is Man City four (4) points we want to hear about.

POINTS DEDUCTION FOR MAN CITY: Forget Nottingham and Everton FFP cases,

it is Man City four (4) points we want to hear about.

It’s impossible to deny the impression that the Premier League was best served by the

timing of the ruling on Nottingham Forest’s appeal of their points deduction.

 

It didn’t really matter how the appeal proceeded because the relegation battles for this season were

all but resolved and it wasn’t likely to have a significant effect unless Forest’s punishment had been raised.

It was never likely given the fury that would have been generated at a club that already felt the

league had it in for them about the use of VAR, and especially as Everton had previously received a lighter sentence.

Therefore, if the Reds had been awarded back, say, two of the points they had previously lost due to player spending violations,

Burnley and Luton’s promotion to the Championship would have been expedited.

As things stand, with two games remaining for each side to finish their seasons and Forest leading both in goals scored and points differential,

it appears like this weekend’s slate of games will ultimately determine the fate of the two teams that were promoted from the previous season.

 

At Premier League HQ, the relief following Saturday’s victories for Forest and Burnley,

as well as Luton’s Friday night draw with Everton, must have been nearly tangible.

They didn’t want the Forest appeal to start a new debate during a season where it looks like technology and

constantly shifting regulations have almost resolved a number of the big disputes. Not exactly, but almost nonetheless.

 

There seems to be a vote every week on some novel method of evaluating club spending,

which typically sparks a feud between the wealthy and the poor; on matchdays,

there appears to be a fresh dispute concerning VAR and refereeing. It must end.

 

The Premier League’s original goal was to be the greatest,

offering huge TV contracts and the biggest salaries and fees to get the top players in the sport to England.

It produced a league that was the talk of the world, one that was entertaining, glamorous, and fast-paced.

Not any longer. The elite league hierarchy appears determined to discover novel approaches to

minimize expenses while stifling the competition with more absurd interpretations of offside and penalty counts.

Have you recently witnessed an unplanned goal celebration? No, neither did I.

The chiefs of referees then exacerbate the problem by pressuring match officials to

interpret ridiculous regulations differently every month.

As a result, an offense that causes problems at the beginning of the season ceases to be an issue by the end of the business end,

and vice versa. In the Himalayan foothills, the playing field is more level.

 

Of course, the most important question of all is still unanswered,

and it was raised repeatedly yesterday by supporters of all teams, not only Forest,

following the announcement of the decision on the most recent points deduction appeal: what about Manchester City?

 

A hearing is scheduled, according to Premier League CEO Richard Masters.

Premier League officials have already stated that the matter is much more complicated and involves rules that were in place before those that entangled teams like Everton and the Reds. They can’t be putting us in danger, can they?

 

Any indication that the 115 accusations City are facing are the result of sleight of hand;

any indication that the matter is being ignored will cause such a backlash against the league that Forest’s complaints about VAR,

Luton supporters, and similar issues will look insignificant.

It will be interesting to watch how the league manages to get out of this sticky situation without compromising their moral standards.

It looks like they’ve backed themselves into a very tight corner.

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