Even though Manchester City were already found guilty of 114 charges for various Premier League financial breaches, a number of English soccer executives reportedly want the club investigated for additional suspected infractions beyond 2018.

Back in September, an independent commission found City guilty of all but one charge lodged against them three years ago. The club arranged “sham” contracts and agreements to inflate revenue and reduce costs by £900 million ($1.2 billion) between the 2009–10 and 2017–18 seasons.

City continue to preach their innocence, so much so that they launched an official appeal to the sweeping guilty verdict. But they could have more trouble coming their way.

According to The Independent, there’s a growing movement to look further into City’s dealings over the last eight years, with one question looming large: “What changed overnight?”

Throughout the already established nine years of cheating, City welcomed inflated sponsorship deals thanks to under-the-table investment from their Abu Dhabi owners. The investigation only stretched to 2018, but their commercial income stayed at the same level in the following years, per the report.

The relationship between City and their Abu Dhabi-based “sponsors” did not change, which points to potentially continued cheating in the subsequent seasons that has gone unprobed. Should more breaches get unearthed, more charges could be coming the club’s way.

The Titles City Could Forfeit If Hit With More Charges

So long as there is an active appeal from City, all sanctions have been put on hold. Potential punishments span from exorbitant fines and transfer bans to a points deduction and Premier League expulsion.

There is also the possible scenario that the Cityzens are stripped of the titles they won during the years they cheated. Should that period extend to the full era of dominance under Pep Guardiola, City are looking at a much more barren trophy cabinet.

In addition to the three Premier League titles City hoisted between the 2009–10 and 2017–18 seasons, they subsequently snagged the English crown five more times, including their unrivaled four successive league triumphs from 2020–21 to 2023–24.

At first, the team’s most recent five league titles were simply tainted by the unfair monetary advantage the club had when building Guardiola’s squad. But a closer look into City’s finances in the following seasons could potentially unearth even further cheating that helped the club stay on top for such an extended period.

The ‘Dilemma’ Surrounding a New Investigation

Not everyone is pushing for the Premier League to open another investigation. The Independent report some feel executives are “getting ahead of themselves,” especially since the original inquiry, which took three years, is still not even wrapped up.

An addition investigation would draw the process out even further, damaging the Premier League’s reputation for years and years to come when the overwhelming desire is to simply “draw a line under the case.”

There’s also questions of sufficient evidence. The original investigation came about largely after leaked emails, covering the period of 2009 to 2018, were published by Der Spiegel.

Without a similar smoking gun this time around, there might not be the necessary basis to open up a new case, no matter how much some might believe City continued breaking the rules.

This article was originally published on www.si.com as How Man City Could Face Even More Charges After Sweeping Guilty Verdict.