Arsenal told Man City title win would come with 'asterisk' as 115 charges question asked

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An asterisk continues to loom over Manchester City's title bid as their 115 charges remain unresolved, according to talkSPORT pundit Simon Jordan. The former Crystal Palace owner also reckons that Pep Guardiola's squad could be viewed as having 'choked' should they lose games in the final run-in.

City have closed to within three points of Arsenal following their 2-1 triumph at the Etihad . Erling Haaland netted the winning goal after Kai Havertz had cancelled out Rayan Cherki's opening effort.

Guardiola's side can leapfrog the Gunners on Wednesday evening if they secure victory against Burnley by more than one goal. But Jordan maintains one specific edge that City possess shouldn't be ignored.

The 58-year-old criticised the club's January transfer activity after they managed to bring in Marc Guehi and Antoine Semenyo earlier this year. Jordan was swift to link this to the uncertainty surrounding the title contenders' pending verdict.

City and the Premier League await the final decision over the club's alleged breaches of Premier League rules. The eight-time Premier League winners faced up to 130 charges connected to alleged breaches of financial regulations between 2009 and 2018 - a spell during which City secured three league titles.

The hearing concluded in December 2024 following a 12-week tribunal, but no verdict has been forthcoming. City have denied any wrongdoing and are said to be confident they will be cleared.

In Jordan's view, any success City have had carries a cloud over it, as he considered whether Guardiola's men could bottle the league given Arsenal have been top for most of the season.

"If Manchester City go top of the league and then lose two of the remaining five games and Arsenal win all of their games then I would suggest Man City want to look internally as one of the observations that we've made is that they have the wherewithal and the squad," Jordan said.

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"So yes, there would be an element of Manchester choked on it. If they get to the top of the league, put it back in their own hands and then don't win the games and Arsenal win all of their games, there would be a degree of City haven't done what they should've done and ended up bottling.

"I do think it's absolutely right, and the thing that no one's brought up, I keep bringing it up. It's lovely if you're Manchester City, when you can dip into the transfer market in January and buy the best two players in the division in their positions.

"That is a massive advantage for Man City that they keep on being able to do. When we talk about asterisks, like that ridiculous observation that Pardew made that Arsenal can win the league with an asterisk.

"We've still got a bloody, great big asterisk hanging over Man City for the last 10 years, haven't we?"

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