Man City face Champions League ban as Uefa president says FFP claims amount to ‘concrete case’ against club

Manchester City could face a Champions League ban after Uefa’s president claimed there is a ‘concrete case’ against them over financial fair play breaches.

Speaking on Monday Aleksander Ceferin said allegations made by German publication Der Spiegel and Football Leaks were being investigated.

Man City were accused of misleading European football’s governing body by disguising millions of pounds of investment by their Abu Dhabi owners through inflated sponsorship deals.

Ceferin said: “We are assessing the situation. We have an independent body working on it. Very soon we will have the answers on what will happen in this concrete case.”

City were rocked by a series of damning reports by Der Spiegel last month.

Internal emails, obtained by the whistleblower platform Football Leaks, revealed the full extent of City’s measures to balance the books, while continuing their incredible outlay on world class talent.

A £67.5m sponsorship deal with Etihad is alleged to have included £59.5m-worth of investment from the Sheikh Mansour (below) - owned Abu Dhabi United Group.

Other revelations detailed a secret project dubbed ‘Longbow,’ which involved selling off image rights to a company alleged to be funded by the same group.

City refused to comment on any of the allegations, claiming: “The attempt to damage the club’s reputation is organised and clear.”

Pep Guardiola (below) is adamant the club have acted properly.

He said last month: “Of course I trust the club and what they have done. Of course, we want to follow the rules. Uefa, Fifa and the Premier League do what they have to do.

“Believe me, I'm completely honest. I don't know what happened, I'm a manager, focused on the pitch, the locker room.

“I am a manager. I'm completely out of how we handle this situation. I'm part of the club, I support the club. We want to do what we have to do in terms of the rules.”

City were already sanctioned for breaching FFP regulations in 2014, which saw them fined £49m as well as having their Champions League squad capped.

A Champions League ban would be among the potential penalties if they are found guilty again.