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Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane has said Manchester City players should "throw their medals in the bin" after the Premier League found the club guilty of charges linked to financial rule breaches during a period in which City won eight trophies.
The Premier League confirmed that City had boosted their income by more than £900 million ($1.2 billion) through what were described as "sham contracts" with commercial partners. Manchester City continue to deny wrongdoing.
The investigation covered the period between 2009 and 2018, during which City won eight trophies, including three Premier League titles.
Speaking as an ITV pundit during England's Nations League match against Czechia, Keane argued that the ruling had undermined the significance of the medals won by City players during the period under investigation.
"If I was a player, I'd be 100% sticking those medals in the bin. Of course you would, it's cheating," Keane said.
"They won it on the pitch because cheating was going on."
Keane also said the club knew its actions would affect many people but went ahead with them regardless.
Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards, who joined the club as a teenager, said the findings had left him devastated and heartbroken.
City were found to have taken part in a scheme worth almost £1 billion ($1.3 billion) that either increased reported revenues or reduced costs through arrangements described as "sham," helping the club avoid breaching Premier League and UEFA financial regulations.
Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, Richards said the language used in the findings had been particularly difficult to take in.
"The reports were troubling. I saw the words which were used by the Premier League in 'sham contracts,' and I felt absolutely devastated."
Richards said his long connection with Manchester City made the situation especially painful, adding that supporters were also struggling with the uncertainty surrounding the club.
"I've been at that club since I was 14 years old, I would die for that club. I achieved my dream at Manchester City, but then to hear these reports, and not only me as an ex-player, but the fans, what they have to go through, absolutely devastating."
Richards said a supporter he had lived with as a young player had called him in tears seeking answers that he did not have.
He added that the findings were difficult to process because of the severity of the reports and City's continuing rejection of the allegations.
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