Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Enzo Maresca has insisted that Manchester City’s titles have not been tainted as he stated his unwavering trust in the club ahead of a testing EPL visit to arch-rivals Liverpool on Sunday.
The Italian manager is confident City will win their appeal after being found guilty of more than 100 breaches of the EPL’s financial regulations.
Maresca did not fully commit to remaining at the Etihad Stadium should the appeal fail, but stressed he was not looking that far ahead.
The 46-year-old was appointed as Pep Guardiola’s successor in the summer, and insists he would still have taken the job if the judgment had been known then.
Maresca said: “The reason why I joined this club is because I completely trust, 100 per cent, the owner, the CEO, the sporting director, the whole organisation. I don’t have any doubt about that.
“I would like to speak about this situation when we are going to win the appeal. I completely trust the club in this moment, in the future, always.”
The commission’s findings included breaches relating to the concealment of funding worth more than £830 million over a nine-year period,
City could face heavy sanctions, including huge points deductions, demotion and the stripping of titles, should the verdict be upheld.
The club have expressed confidence throughout the whole process and maintain they have a “comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence” to support their case.
Guardiola, who often struck a similarly defiant tone in relation to the charges, once said he would stay at the club and manage in League One if they were relegated.
Asked if he would do the same, Maresca said: “I won the Championship with Leicester. So in case (of) League One, we are going to see, but we are thinking about something that we don’t know.”
Maresca insisted the matter has not tainted City’s or his past achievements, most pertinently for him the 2023 treble win, when he was a member of Guardiola’s backroom staff.
He said: “Absolutely not. The last time I was here was the treble season. I know the efforts from the players, from the club, from the manager in that time – Pep – so I know the effort the club put in to achieve that target. I don’t have any doubts about that.”
City are likely to encounter a hostile atmosphere at Liverpool.
Maresca said: “I know Anfield is a nice pitch. It will probably be more warm in terms of environment but the reason I decided to be manager is for this kind of game.”
