Thierry Henry has said that any decision to remove Manchester City’s honours would not alter the ability or achievements of the players who represented the club during the seasons under scrutiny.

Key takeaways

• Manchester City are pursuing an appeal after an independent commission ruled for the Premier League on 114 financial-related counts.
• The case has generated intense attention and criticism around Pep Guardiola’s team.
• City’s first Champions League match ended in a 4-2 defeat at home to Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.
• Henry said former City figures including Vincent Kompany and Kevin De Bruyne should not be judged through the club’s legal dispute.
• The former Arsenal forward stressed that the appeal process must be allowed to run its course.

Appeal process puts City under renewed focus

The Premier League champions are awaiting a hearing in their challenge against findings related to alleged breaches of financial regulations. City were found liable on all but one of the charges brought in their long-running dispute with the league.

The timetable for the appeal is now under way after the club contested the independent commission’s decision, which went in the Premier League’s favour on 114 counts. The announcement, made during the international break, has prompted substantial speculation, examination and criticism of Guardiola’s squad.

Henry was questioned about the case after City opened their Champions League campaign with Wednesday’s 4-2 loss to PSG at the Etihad Stadium.

Henry defends players’ standing

Speaking to CBS Sports, the former France international said he sympathised with the players because they were not responsible for, or necessarily aware of, the matters at issue.

“I feel sorry for them because it has nothing to do with them; they don’t know what happened,” Henry said.

He added that, regardless of the eventual sanction, former City players could face questions over whether their successes were legitimate. Henry said that would be unjust, citing Kompany and De Bruyne as outstanding footballers.

“Whatever the outcome or punishment, it’s not what I believe, but it’s always going to be, ‘Ah, did you really win?’ That’s unfair to those guys. Vincent Kompany was a hell of a player; Kevin De Bruyne was a hell of a player,” he said.

Henry said the legal process should be respected and noted that an appeal does not wipe away the original findings, while giving City an opportunity to challenge them. “There is a procedure that we have to respect. The facts are the facts. Yes, when they’ve been found guilty and when you appeal, it doesn’t erase everything, but it gives hope that maybe you might not be guilty.”