Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has stated a decision over the club's '115 charges' of alleged financial misconduct could be arriving in February or March - before the current Premier League season ends.

On December 6, Man City's three-month trial with top-flight officials came to an end in London. There they denied all counts of financial wrongdoing they were accused of between 2009 and 2018 - a stance the club have maintained vehemently throughout the process.

The charges, which actually amount to 130, range in their seriousness and whilst continuing with their on-field endeavours, Guardiola and his team have had to contend with the possible outcome of titles stripped, financial punishments, transfer embargoes, points deductions or the worst of them all - relegation.

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An exact timeline of the process has not been given yet as upon the trial's recent conclusion an independent panel must now review each and every single charge with specific decisions made.

But now Guardiola himself has become the closest person to the situation to pinpoint an accurate timeframe for when the reigning champions will discover their fate.

Asked at his pre-Aston Villa press conference (as per the Guardian) whether insecurity over a positive verdict will make transfer targets less likely to sign in the January window, he replied: "I don’t know.

"It’s going to happen in winter time. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I know the people are expecting that but I don’t know. In February, March, [maybe] will be the sentence."

This would mark a quicker turnaround than many anticipated with original discussions dating back before the trial got underway suggesting a verdict would not arrive until after the conclusion of the 2024/25 Premier League campaign.

However, no matter the outcome, the losing side is reportedly expected to initiate an appeal process that will see the matter drag on further into the future.