London (AFP) - The chair of English football’s Independent Regulator has said he expects Manchester City’s appeal after being found guilty of more than 100 breaches of Premier League financial rules to be heard by January.

City, who have repeatedly maintained they are innocent of the charges, are currently top of the Premier League table with six wins out of six following their 3-0 defeat of Liverpool last weekend.

No sanction has yet been announced, but City could face a heavy points deduction leading to relegation and there is even been speculation they could be stripped of the three Premier League titles they won between 2009 and 2018.

“The Premier League have said that they want to get this resolved within season, and actually, of course, it’s not the Premier League, it’s an independent commission that’s actually going to hear this, made of three retired either judges or lawyers,” Independent Football Regulator (IFR) chair David Kogan told Times Radio on Wednesday.

“My understanding is that there is a prescribed process, which is 12 weeks, and so people are assuming this will actually be heard by the middle or the end of January.

“But as I say, it’s not our process, it’s that of the Premier League’s independent commission. What I don’t think we can do is take any judgment until we’re quite clear.”

Kogan said Tuesday he would resign if there was political interference in any future IFR investigations of City.

- Burnham ‘concern’ -

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham was criticised for his comments saying he would be “really concerned” if City’s Abu Dhabi owners left the club following the verdict.

Downing Street subsequently had to backtrack, insisting no one was “above the rules”.

Burnham, who was mayor of Greater Manchester from 2017 to June 2026, has since published all of his dealings with the City hierarchy.

On Monday, the Greater Manchester Combined Authority said Burnham had met Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak at an investment summit several years ago when he was mayor of the city.

It was also revealed Burnham had spoken to him in the stands at former City captain Vincent Kompany’s testimonial and was accompanied by staff from the club on official overseas visits.

Burnham was pressed on the issue during Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons on Wednesday.

Jerome Mayhew, an MP for the main opposition Conservative party, asked Burnham if anyone associated with the running of Manchester City had raised the issue of the charges either with him or any member of his team.

Burnham replied: “They did not raise those issues with me.”

Kogan said earlier Wednesday: “We’ve had absolutely no interference from anybody since we created the regulator a year ago.

“We cannot, when regulating football, be subject to political interference on decisions we make about owners, directors or anything else.”

He added: “And I won’t actually be prepared to run an organisation which is subject to that degree of interference.”

Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca said last week he “completely trusts” the club and believes it will win its appeal.