A parallel universe where Man City didn’t cheat: Brendan Rodgers has a statue outside Anfield – but is it Jurgen Klopp’s heavy metal football or a Pep Guardiola dynasty at Man United?

Daily Mail writer James Sharpe explores an alternate reality of English football following a guilty verdict against Manchester City for financial rule breaches. Sharpe argues that without City's actions, Brendan Rodgers might have won the 2013-14 Premier League title with Liverpool, earning a statue at Anfield and altering the managerial timeline across the league.

The piece contends that alternative scenarios could have seen Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola managing Manchester United, while Mikel Arteta might never have studied under Guardiola. Sharpe concludes that the true damage of City's alleged rule-breaking lies in how it fundamentally reshaped careers, transfers, and the sport's history.