Guardian columnist Jonathan Wilson has argued that Manchester City’s trophies should be stripped and left blank rather than awarded to the clubs they beat, saying redistribution would be arbitrary and hollow.
Writing on the independent commission’s guilty verdict, Wilson points to specific competitions: the 2014 League Cup final, where City beat Sunderland 3-1 while breaking rules; the 2016 and 2018 League Cups won ahead of Liverpool and Arsenal; and Premier League titles in 2012, 2014 and 2018 taken ahead of United and Liverpool.
Wilson acknowledges every club that faced City between 2009 and 2018 has legitimate grounds for feeling cheated. But he argues awarding retrospective titles is unsatisfying. He uses the 2017-18 season as example: City finished 15 points clear by January, allowing rivals to prioritise cup competitions instead of chasing the league. Awarding United, who finished second, the title would be “empty and arbitrary”, he contends.
Instead, Wilson believes blanks on trophies serve as both rebuke to City’s greed and tribute to the Premier League’s pursuit of justice.
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