Man City players focused, excited ahead of Liverpool, PSG tests — Maresca

Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has said he and his players are focused on football despite the “noise” surrounding the club as they prepare to face Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday.

City will travel to Anfield for the 4:30pm UK time kick-off before hosting Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League three days later.

Maresca, in a release on the club website on Thursday, said the club had been clear in its position and that he and the players trusted its leadership, adding that their attention remained on matters they could control on the pitch.

“Personally I’m very calm to be honest,” he said. “The Club has been quite clear. We trust completely the Club.

“We understand the noise but the focus for us is just what we can control and we can control just the football side.”

The City manager said the players were excited about the upcoming fixtures, particularly because the team was top of the league.

“The feeling is fantastic, to be honest. The players are excited for the next two games. But especially they are excited because in this moment we are top of the league.

“The players are just focused on that. They know what we can control is the football side – they are not worried at all about different things.”

Maresca said the players understood that there was noise surrounding the club but were concentrating on their professional responsibilities and the challenge of facing Liverpool at Anfield.

“They know their profession and they know that the noise is there but they don’t care too much about the noise. They are just focused in this moment on how we can bear Liverpool and how, together with the fans, we can try to win in Anfield.”

These remarks emerge during an ongoing dispute concerning Manchester City's Premier League financial regulations investigation, wherein an independent tribunal determined the organization culpable of 114 out of 115 allegations pertaining to purported violations spanning the period from 2009 through 2018.

The tribunal's conclusions encompassed violations related to financial disclosure practices, commercial partnership arrangements, and expenditure constraints, alongside instances of non-compliance with the league's investigative procedures. Manchester City has contested the allegations, maintains its innocence, and has initiated an appeal against the ruling, while disciplinary measures remain pending determination.