Manchester City are appealing against the guilty verdict of 114 of 115 charges for financial breaches

Manchester City’s ongoing legal battle with the Premier League has been labelled as a “disaster” for English football, while Emile Heskey has predicted the Blues will be punished with a 60-point deduction. A final outcome could come in the new year after City appealed an independent commission's guilty verdict.

It was confirmed in September that City had been found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges that had been brought against them by the Premier League. City are still maintaining their innocence and submitted an appeal a few days after the guilty verdict was announced.

Premier League rules state that an appeal should be completed within 12 weeks, with the independent panel then having a further 30 days to reach a final decision.

Should their appeal be rejected, City are confronting the possibility of a points deduction, a substantial fine and even expulsion from the Premier League.

Former striker and pundit Ally McCoist acknowledged that he finds the situation 'sad' and that the sanction is certain to anger some clubs, amid reports that rivals are lobbying for the harshest of punishments if City are found guilty again. McCoist also addressed comparisons to the case in which Rangers were relegated through the divisions in Scotland back in 2012.

"Man City being compared to Rangers? I get the comparison a little bit," Ally McCoist said in an interview with talkSPORT Bet.

"There are no real comparisons in the legalities of it, but I understand the sentiment. If City lose the appeal, no matter what happens, people will be unhappy with the level of punishment.

"Some will think it's too light, others too harsh. It leaves an overall sense of sadness more than anything else that we can't get this resolved sooner. I understand there's a legal and appeals process to go through, but it's a disaster for the English game.

"I just felt sad watching Liverpool and City have a right go at each other, or seeing three incredible goals at Anfield, and then on Monday morning we're talking about financial charges and whether goals will count. I just find that really sad."

Meanwhile, Heskey, whose sons Jaden and Reigan both came through City's academy, has predicted that the club will receive a 60-point deduction as punishment — a penalty that would almost certainly condemn them to relegation.

"As for the off-field legal issues and their appeal, it's so complex that it won't be resolved quickly or sorted this season," Heskey said, via BestBettingSites.

"Both sides are going to throw arguments back and forth, and it could go on for a year or more. Whether it ends in a massive points deduction or relegation, nobody knows yet, but it's not getting settled straight away.

"I think they will probably get a 60-point deduction, but say City get 90-something points, or 100 – well, then they could stay up. They've got a chance. If they end up staying up, then I'm not sure that's the right punishment from the point of view of other clubs. They will probably go into the Championship, but people will have questions about whether they should go into League One or League Two, instead.

"I don't know what will be considered good enough, and I wouldn't be surprised if there's a bit of negotiations behind the scenes to find an outcome that's acceptable for everyone. That could go on for a year."