"There's 115 charges around them" - Ian Wright highlights 'elephant in the room' while comparing Liverpool and Manchester City 

Ian Wright highlights
Ian Wright highlights 'elephant in the room' while comparing Liverpool and Manchester City.

Arsenal legend Ian Wright has brought the reference of 115 financial breaches while comparing the success of Liverpool and Manchester City. The former England striker has claimed that it is impossible to label Pep Guardiola a better manager than Jurgen Klopp until the 115 charges against the Cityzens are resolved.

Manchester City were charged with 115 breaches in February 2023 for financial irregularities between 2009 and the last season. In that timeframe, the Sky Blues have won seven Premier League titles, three FA Cups, and the Champions League.

Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp have competed with each other over the years for dominance in English and European football with Manchester City and Liverpool, respectively. Guardiola has been significantly more successful than his counterpart but Wright has refused to declare the Spaniard the winner of the battle.

Wright insisted that Klopp deserves more credit for the job he has done at Liverpool, pushing Manchester City to the wire. He said on Monday Night Football, as quoted by Liverpool.com:

"You look at the trophy haul and you have to say that Pep's done very well. But then you look at what Klopp has done to try to catch Manchester City, the way he's built that team, how long it's taken them to get there.
"You have to say, it might be easier for Pep in what he's done, but Klopp's still got to get a lot of love. It's there for everyone to see in respect of trophies but we can't speak about City without speaking about the fact there's 115 charges around them."

Wright added:

"The one thing I would like more than anything else is for that to be gone so you can give the team and the manager the love they deserve. You speak about them and it's like there's an elephant in the room.
"You want to speak about them, with this rivalry, without saying, 'Yeah....', it's not fair on the players, it's not fair on the club. The sooner that's gone, the better for them, but you can't look at the amount of trophies and say that Guardiola's not done better."

Manchester City are awaiting the verdict of the 115 breaches and have also been charged with non-cooperation with the investigation. They have, however, maintained their stance on the fact that they are innocent.


Ian Wright claims Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp made a mistake with substitution against Manchester City

Arsenal legend Ian Wright has claimed that Jurgen Klopp made a mistake by substituting Darwin Nunez in the 76th minute during the Liverpool vs City clash on Sunday (March 10).

The two clubs only settled for a 1-1 draw. The Reds dropped to second place in the table behind Arsenal due to an inferior goal difference.

Ian Wright has claimed that Klopp should not have taken Nunez off as the Reds missed his energy in the closing minutes of the game. The former England striker said:

“With Nunez, I’d never take him off, especially at Anfield. I would just tighten him up in those situations. I’d let him watch those videos and say, ‘Look at this,’ Look what he can do. Speak to Harvey Elliott and say, ‘When you get that ball, you don’t even need to look. Just put it over there."

Nunez's finishing has come under severe scrutiny since his £85 million switch to Liverpool from Benfica in the summer of 2022. The 24-year-old has contributed with 16 goals and 12 assists in 40 games across competitions this season.

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Edited by Sudeshna Banerjee
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