Manchester City v PSG is a reminder of the path not taken in sanctions battles

Gulf-owned clubs have faced Uefa scrutiny – their different approaches since have left one at the top table and one raging against the machine Nasser al-Khelaifi was among those unhappy with the timing of the release of Manchester City’s guilty verdict by the Premier League a fortnight ago, although his visit with Paris Saint-Germain to the Etihad Stadium for a Champions League game on Wednesday provides a timely reminder that it could have been far worse.

The two clubs are linked by more than their ownership by Gulf states, being among the first found to have broken Uefa’s financial fair play rules in 2014, and by a magnitude that would make subsequent offenders pale in comparison. Uefa’s investigators found that between 2011 and 2013, when the maximum permitted loss for clubs competing in European competitions was €45m (£38m), PSG’s deficit was €218m and