Manchester City were handed a two-year ban from the Champions League by UEFA for breaching financial fair play rules and regulations. But the current Premier League champions have appealed against the suspension and are confident that a decision will go in their favour. But as per recent reports from England, City’s league rivals do not want them to play in the prestigious European competition until the matter is fully resolved and have launched a bid to stop them from taking part in next year’s competition. UEFA Bans Manchester City From Champions League for Next Two Seasons.

According to a report from English news outlet Daily Mail, eight of the current top 10 teams in the Premier League are concerned that City will get to play in the Champions League due to their appeal and have submitted a joint application to prevent that from happening. All of the clubs in the top half of the league bar Manchester City and Sheffield United have come together in this bid. Manchester United and Manchester City Join Forces As Clubs Donate £100,000 to Local Food-Banks Amid Coronavirus Pandemic.

It is understood that they have written a letter to the Court of Arbitration of Sports (CAS) through a legal form to as the governing body to exclude City from next year’s Champions League season. It is unclear on how the situation will pan as the defending English Champions can play in UCL next season as a final verdict on their appeal is yet to be announced.

The reports suggest that the Premier League clubs were not happy with City’s behaviour ‘The feeling is that enough is enough, For too long, City have been able to get away with breaching the rules at the expense of at least one other club that has been unable to get into the Champions League’ the source said.

The current season of the Champions League is currently postponed due to the rapid growth of the Coronavirus outbreak and it is not yet clear on when the tournament will be resumed. Along with this, UEFA also announced the postponement of Euro 2020 to the summer of next year.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 26, 2020 10:25 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).