MANCHESTER, England -- The boos for the Premier League anthem were louder than usual at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday and the stands were awash with inflatable bananas. The chants from the home fans are different now and include renditions of "You're going down with the City" and "Stockport away ole, ole." But other things are the same in Manchester City's post-verdict world. They're still winning and Erling Haaland is still scoring.
Regardless of whatever happens this weekend, Enzo Maresca's team will be top of the table on Monday morning. Whether it matters or not is another question. Found guilty of multiple breaches of financial rules, the club could be hit with a points deduction, which renders all this meaningless.
Until then, City are plowing on as normal. Another win -- this time 3-2 against Ipswich Town -- and another two goals for Haaland. It's now seven wins from seven for City in the Premier League and 12 goals in 10 games in all competitions for Haaland.
Since the judgement from the three-person independent panel was published during the international break, Maresca's team have won two from three -- including against Liverpool at Anfield -- and produced a creditable display against European champions Paris Saint-Germain. For now, as Maresca likes to say, City have managed to block out "the noise.".
Source: ESPN Soccer · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing