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Rodri believes in Man City's 'innocence'

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Cite

BBC Sport. (2026, September 25). Rodri believes in Man City's 'innocence'. BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cmkgwwze9r28o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

BBC News · collected 2026-09-25 · by BBC Sport

Quick Summary

Former Manchester City midfielder Rodri, now with Barcelona, expressed confidence in his former club’s innocence regarding financial misconduct after the Premier League found City guilty of breaching most of 115 rules. Despite this finding and an impending appeal, Rodri cited a previous acquittal by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in 2020 as evidence of their trust in the justice system. He dismissed concerns about potential title revocation, emphasizing that the trophies won were earned through hard work and dedication.
Written by AI on 2026-09-25, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Manchester City Found Guilty of 114 Out of 115 Charges by Premier League Commission

In a significant ruling, an independent commission found Manchester City guilty of 114 out of 115 charges brought against them by the Premier League. The accusations stem from a "disguised funding scheme" that allegedly inflated revenue by over £830 million between 2009 and 2018.

Reactions and Implications

Outlook

This ruling marks a pivotal moment in Premier League history, raising questions about financial transparency and regulation within the sport.

Written for “Manchester City Guilty Verdict Appeals” on 2026-11-02, grounded in this article and the 83 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Manchester City Guilty Verdict Appeals
Sports · 84 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 4% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 11 claims Outlet record 64/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 3 of 7 claims Outlet record 64/100
“Article A reports on Man City being found guilty of financial breaches, while Article B focuses on Rodri's belief in Man City's innocence despite the verdict.”
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 17 claims Outlet record 64/100
“The articles discuss reactions to Manchester City's financial wrongdoing verdict but cover different individuals' responses and do not describe a single specific incident or occurrence.”
Evening Standard
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 4 of 20 claims Outlet record 64/100
“The articles discuss different perspectives on Manchester City's financial scandal but report on distinct opinions and reactions rather than the same specific incident.”
BBC News
Hedges 2 of 22 claims Outlet record 68/100
“The articles discuss related topics but describe different incidents: one focuses on Rodri's comments about Manchester City's innocence, while the other is about Joe Hart trusting Khaldoon Al Mubarak's stance.”
Toronto Star
Hedges 3 of 11 claims Outlet record 64/100
“Article A discusses Rodri's belief in Manchester City's innocence regarding recent financial wrongdoing, while Article B provides a historical overview of the club's transformation under Abu Dhabi ownership.”
Daily Mail
Hedges 4 of 16 claims Outlet record 68/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of the Manchester City financial controversy; Article A focuses on Rodri's support for the club, while Article B addresses the Sports Secretary's call for a swift resolution to the ongoing case.”
BBC News
Hedges 6 of 38 claims Outlet record 68/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of Manchester City's financial scandal, with one focusing on Rodri's opinion about the club's innocence and the other on a former executive's warning about the potential consequences of the legal fight.”
Al Jazeera
Hedges 1 of 21 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of the same day's events; one focuses on Rodri's stance regarding Manchester City's innocence in a financial dispute, while the other reports on Spain's victory against England in the UEFA Nations League.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
24
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
4%
1 of 24 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
68/100
BBC News's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
84
Sports
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-25 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

BBC News · 4864 article(s) · 6 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 6 correction(s)

Who wrote this

BBC Sport
97 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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2026-11-01 · assertive framing · Irish Olympic runner Ciara Mageean dies aged 34
🔮 On Friday, Villa said they would initiate legal action against the former England defender for what they described as "unacceptable insults".
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · Carragher apologises to Villa for 'wrong' language
🔮 - Published Aston Villa say they will initiate legal action against Jamie Carragher over what the club branded as "unacceptable insults".
2026-10-30 · assertive framing · Villa to sue Carragher over 'unacceptable insults'
🔮 I saw the first-team performances as being my main responsibility so I never wavered from my work on the training ground either, coaching a certain way that suited the players and gave them the best chance of winning games - which would ultimately determine my future.
2026-10-30 · assertive framing · Why managers must put their own fitness first - Pulis
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2026-10-29 · assertive framing · Fleetwood to face Everton or Newcastle in last eight
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Also by BBC Sport
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 97 articles by BBC Sport →

Topics

City Manchester City Spain Uefa Nations League the Premier League

Subjects

City ORG · 4× Rodri PERSON · 4× Manchester City GPE · 2× the Premier League ORG · 2× Barcelona ORG · 1× England GPE · 1× European NORP · 1× Spain GPE · 1× Uefa Nations League ORG · 1× the Court of Arbitration for Sport ORG · 1×

Narrative

" PM wants to 'study' report Prime Minister Andy Burnham has urged people to "study" the independent commission's report in "some considerable detail before reaching any conclusions" on the charges facing Manchester City.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-25
🔮 - Published Former Manchester City midfielder Rodri believes the club are innocent of any financial wrongdoing and will continue to trust them unless they are proved otherwise.
2026-09-25 · BBC News
Rodri believes in Man City's 'innocence' · assertive framing

Claims (24 extracted, 1 hedged)

- Published Former Manchester City midfielder Rodri believes the club are innocent of any financial wrongdoing and will continue to trust them unless they are proved otherwise. asserted
they → publish → them
City have been found guilty of breaking the majority of the 115 financial rules they were accused of breaching by the Premier League, although they are set to appeal. asserted
they → find → League
Speaking at a news conference before Spain's Uefa Nations League match against England at Wembley the 30-year-old, who joined Barcelona in August, backed City's stance. asserted
who → speak → stance
"They always express the confidence that they never did something wrong and we believe in that," Rodri said. " asserted
Rodri → express → that
Until the moment they are proved wrong, we will believe the club. asserted
we → prove → club
They always tell us the confidence they have on the innocence." asserted
they → tell → innocence
City were cleared of separate financial fair play charges by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in 2020, having initially been given a two-year ban from European competitions by Uefa. asserted
City → clear → Uefa
Rodri cited the case as a reason for the confidence of the club's players. asserted
Rodri → cite → players
"We had the example of 2020 that the process was the same and at the end nothing happened," he explained. " asserted
he → have → end
We have faced something similar, we had a similar judicial process. asserted
we → face → process
"There as well in the first instance we were found guilty, but we believed in the club and the innocence that the club maintained and in the end we ended up acquitted. asserted
we → find → end
"So, I believe in the justice system, and I believe in the innocence of the club." asserted
I → believe → club
The club won eight trophies in the period covered by the Premier League case, including three league titles, three League Cups, one Community Shield and one FA Cup. asserted
club → win → titles
Rodri dismissed talk of City being stripped of some of the titles they won as part of any punishment against the club. asserted
they → dismiss → club
"What we did, they cannot take out of us," he added. asserted
he → take → us
"It's something that is not paid by money. asserted
that → pay → money
It's paid with effort, with the damage, with, you know, being shoulder to shoulder every day. asserted
you → pay → shoulder
"I can tell you that everything was deserved, and I'm glad that I could live one of the best eras of English football in here. uncertain
I → tell → football
" PM wants to 'study' report Prime Minister Andy Burnham has urged people to "study" the independent commission's report in "some considerable detail before reaching any conclusions" on the charges facing Manchester City. asserted
Burnham → want → City
"I would have to look at the report of the independent commission, and people shouldn't jump to those kinds of conclusions," Burnham told ITV Granada. asserted
Burnham → have → Granada
"I know this has been a long process between the club and the Premier League. asserted
this → know → club
I think it has been quite a contested process. asserted
it → think → ?
"So I don't think it's as simple as jumping to conclusions. asserted
it → think → conclusions
I think we would all need to study the independent commission's report in some considerable detail before reaching any conclusions." asserted
we → think → conclusions
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