Suffering fans, Gers only similarity with Man City’s finance charge
Who would have thought that the news about Manchester City being charged with multiple breaches of financial impropriety would lead to Celtic fans jumping on every single article and thread and making it all about their favourite subject – Rangers.
In reality – which Celtic fans talking about our woes in 2012 rarely live in – there is little in terms of similarities between the two clubs, the Premier League champions appear to have knowingly attempted to bend the rules whereas Rangers adopted a procedure that numerous other clubs were using at the same time and was perfectly legal. The issue was when we couldn’t afford the subsequent tax bill to go with David Murray’s negligence.
Professor Brian Howieson author of “Rangers 1998-2015” told Vital Rangers that it was how Rangers used the EBTs that was the problem and that the driver was to gain a sporting advantage, which has always been the crux of Celtic fans’ arguments. This is, probably, the only link between City’s current plight and our own.
In England, there is no way that we will see something similar to what happened in Scotland when the league voted on a rule change to approve Charles Green’s takeover of Rangers and subsequent right to stay in the Premiership, a rule that the league reverted back to after the decision was made. That is when we had to apply to join the lower leagues and the reason that we weren’t relegated.
The punishments that Man City could face are wide in the extreme; a fine would be pointless, as would a transfer embargo, however, a points deduction, title stripping and even expulsion from the league would send our noisy neighbours into meltdown.
I feel sorry for City fans who have been with the club through thick and thin because they have lived every fan’s dream and it is they who will be punished the most – will we see Man Utd or Liverpool or Arsenal fans becoming tax experts and financial advisors in the process though? I doubt it.
