Lifelong Manchester City diehard Simon Hill's MUST READ analysis on 'the biggest scandal English football has seen'

"This is the new reality in football. I don't have to like it - in truth I don't care much for it at all - but what is the alternative for clubs who want to compete?" They were the words I wrote in 2009 for the Fox Sports (now DAZN) website, upon hearing the news that Manchester City had been taken over by Sheikh Mansour & his Emirati millions.

Seventeen years later, City are mired in the biggest scandal English football has ever seen. Found guilty of breaching 114 financial regulations.

The club maintains its innocence and will appeal the decision - and don't rule out a challenge to the High Court at some stage in the future. But after all this is resolved, what next for the Premier League, for City and for their fans - of which I am one?

Firstly, let me say that if the guilty verdicts are upheld, then there can be no complaints. Whatever you think of the rules (more on which later), the club knew what those rules were and had a duty to abide by them.

If they have flouted them to the extent outlined in the Commission's report, then the punishment will have to be severe. The Premier League and the English Football League (where relegated Premier League clubs drop into) are separate entities, and to forcibly relegate a club would require the co-operation of the EFL and its clubs.

Again, possibly - but more likely (given the complexity of then sorting out multiple compensation claims that would inevitably follow), is that they are voided, or an asterisk added to the historical record. This has precedent with (smaller) cases such as Everton & Nottingham Forest.

Given the sheer scale of charges, one could expect any deduction to be punitive, enough to forcibly relegate City into the Championship, with the bonus that the EFL is obliged to accept any relegated club, as happens on a yearly basis now. There will inevitably be a fine of enormous magnitude.

Whether those measures will be enough to sate the anger of other clubs and their fans remains to be seen. Once the City outcome has been decided, the focus will shift to the longer term.

This is the area where the Premier League is going to come under the most scrutiny. Do the rules need tightening up?