This weekend Manchester City will contest the FA Cup final with Manchester United at Wembley. It’s the first time the two rivals have ever met in the final and represents the past and present of English football dominance. For years Manchester United were the all-powerful force, now it is Manchester City.
As Jonathan Liew tells Michael Safi, the transformation of Manchester City, from perennial also-rans to the most powerful club in the country, has been achieved in just 15 years. That current dominance can be traced to one crucial moment: the takeover of the club by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan of the Abu Dhabi royal family. The millions of pounds ploughed into the club have bought not just the best players but the best coach, the best medical staff, backroom analysers, scouts – and lawyers.
It’s the lawyers who have come to the fore in recent months following a decision by the Premier League to charge the club with breaching financial fair play rules designed to prevent rich owners from gaining an unfair competitive advantage. City strongly deny breaking any rules and as they await a ruling that could take years, the club’s celebrated manager, Pep Guardiola, leads them towards a treble: Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in the same season.
Photograph: Martin Rickett/PA
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