Mansion Sports – Wayne Rooney has surprisingly stated that Manchester City should not be stripped of their previous titles despite the club being found guilty of 115 financial breaches.

The unprecedented ruling revealed fake contracts and concealed funding schemes spanning nine seasons.

Rooney said he would reject any medal awarded retrospectively, but he called for severe relegation as a consequence of the historic breaches.

Rooney Opposes Title Stripping

Rooney does not believe Man City should lose their historic honors following the recently delivered guilty verdict.

The Manchester United legend was part of the squad that finished second behind Roberto Mancini's side on goal difference on the final day of the dramatic 2011-12 season.

Despite major revelations surrounding the club's finances, Rooney does not want to inherit a championship through a boardroom decision and expressed sympathy for the players who achieved that success on the pitch.

Rejecting a Retrospective Medal

Speaking on the Stick to United podcast, Rooney said: "I wouldn't feel comfortable accepting another Premier League medal, if I'm honest, because I don't think we deserved it."

"We didn't do enough that season to win the league. I think from the perspective of their players, they did everything they could to win the Premier League title and in their minds, they had already won it."

"And if that happened to me, if suddenly Manchester United did the same thing and my Premier League medal was taken away, I would be absolutely devastated."

Fake Contracts and Concealed Funding

The debate over retrospective action emerged after the Premier League confirmed that an independent commission found the club guilty of serious financial breaches between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons.

The details of the ruling were staggering. The commission found that a concealed funding scheme conducted through Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG) allegedly channelled more than £900 million into the club to artificially increase revenue and reduce costs.

In addition, the official ruling highlighted that the club, which is currently the champions, made various efforts to obstruct the investigation over a four-year period, including avoiding spending limits imposed by the Premier League and UEFA.

Heavy Punishment and Appeal Awaited

While opposing efforts to rewrite history, Rooney called for strict sporting sanctions going forward.

"I would put them in the lowest league they could go into and then put restrictions on them regarding how much money they can spend over the next three or four seasons," he added.

With the club strongly denying the allegations and preparing to appeal the damaging verdict, a separate hearing held behind closed doors will soon determine the precise punishment.

The unprecedented legal battle is expected to remain a major focus of English football for months.

Rooney's comments highlight the dilemma that emerges when past financial breaches intersect with match results that have already become part of football history.

He rejects receiving a title retrospectively, but at the same time believes sporting sanctions are still necessary to address the breaches established in the ruling.