Manchester City guilty on 114 of 115 charges

The Premier League's independent commission has delivered the verdict England has been waiting on for years: Manchester City are guilty on 114 of a total of 115 charges of breaching financial rules. The saga began back in 2018, after reporting by Germany's Der Spiegel, and concerns misstated finances, undisclosed payments to players and managers, and breaches of UEFA and league rules. There's no sanction yet. The rulebook allows anything from a reprimand and a fine to a points deduction and expulsion from the league. City, currently top of the table with five straight wins under Enzo Maresca, say they will appeal and insist they have "comprehensive and irrefutable evidence". If the evidence is that irrefutable, how did the commission manage to overlook it in 114 cases?

Rivals want compensation

The verdict has woken up the lawyers too. Several Premier League clubs have already sought legal advice on possible compensation, arguing that City's breaches between 2009 and 2018 cost them sporting and financial opportunities - one missed out on the Champions League, another on a sponsorship bonus. There's a precedent: in June an independent commission ordered Everton to pay Burnley 35.1 million pounds after finding that breaching profitability rules had given Everton a sporting advantage. Before any case, though, City's appeal has to run its course. One thing is certain - lawyers will be writing this story for many seasons to come.

Ronaldo misfires, Portugal still win

Portugal beat Wales 1-0 in the Nations League, but the night didn't belong to Cristiano Ronaldo. The only goal came from João Félix, a long-range effort midway through the first half that deflected off Ben Davies. Ronaldo, at 41, missed a close-range volley, and the goal he scored around the hour mark was ruled out for offside after a VAR check. He was substituted in the 67th minute and stayed on 146 international goals. His target is 1,000 career goals, and after the round-of-16 exit to Spain at the World Cup he decided to carry on with the national team. Next up is Norway in Oslo on Sunday - will every chance be funnelled to him there too?

Macedonia host Switzerland tonight

Tonight at 20:45 at the Todor Proeski National Arena, Macedonia open their new Nations League cycle against Switzerland - for the first time as part of League B. Head coach Goce Sedloski will be without Boban Nikolov and Darko Čurlinov. Captain Enis Bardhi called on fans to fill the arena: "When we play in Skopje, no opponent feels comfortable." Eljif Elmas, Atalanta's new signing, expects an extremely tough game against a quarter-finalist from the last World Cup, but says the team is ready. It's the first of four matches in a short space of time. Switzerland have just been relegated from League A - if not now, when?

Yakin trained in Turkey because of the grass in Skopje

Switzerland coach Murat Yakin didn't arrive in Skopje with compliments for the hosts. His team held their final training session in Turkey, and one of the reasons was the state of the pitch at the Todor Proeski Arena. "When you see a pitch like that, with grass seven centimetres high, you're glad you trained in Turkey," Yakin said, adding that he'd be happy if the grass were mowed, because football can't be played on a surface like that. The Swiss will be without Granit Xhaka and Breel Embolo, and the coach is planning one or two new names in the starting line-up. How much does a lawnmower for the national stadium cost - and why does it take a visiting coach to remind us?