David Ornstein broke the news for The Athletic last Friday that Manchester City had been found guilty of the majority of the 115 breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules they were charged with. The entire story surrounding City and the Premier League’s charges is the biggest story in English football for the past 25 years. There is no doubt about that. Ever since Ornstein’s story broke, the coverage on this issue has been saturating. That is understandable based on the size and significance of the story. However, there is one issue. At this stage, there has been no official confirmation of the guilty verdict from the Premier League. Instead, the leak has caused an even bigger mess that does need cleaning up for clarity surrounding the entire situation.

I’m no expert on financial matters in football and never claim to be. I can only give my opinion on that story as it unfolds. That is what I will try to attempt to do based on today’s updates.

First, Kaveh Solhekol reported for Sky Sports that the independent tribunal had found Manchester City guilty of the majority of the 115 charges levelled against them. As per Solhekol’s report, the process is now moving to the appeal process. It is also reported that if Manchester City’s appeal fails, they could turn to the High Court to clear their name.

Kieran Horn has reported for The Manchester Evening News that Manchester City chief Ferran Soriano says City’s legal battle with the Premier League still has a long way to go. Soriano spoke at a meeting between the European Football Clubs Board in Copenhagen earlier today. It is also reported by the Associated Press that Soriano felt the need to comment on the situation today based on what has unfolded surrounding the issue since last Friday. Furthermore, Manchester City disagree with the ruling and are confident of winning the case against the 115 charge and clearing the club’s name.

As right now, Manchester City’s intentions are clear. They are determined to clear the club’s name and will fight to do so. There are enough reports out there that indicate which route City will go down. Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al-Mubarak released a statement and said that he is confident that City will clear their name. Due to the strict confidentiality that surrounds the ongoing case, the City chairman couldn’t explain why he is so confident in City’s case.

That is where the issue lies. Friday’s leak of the verdict in the 115 case against Manchester City has caused a storm that has rarely been seen before. Premier League CEO Richard Masters said in August, in quotes relayed by the Mirror , that he couldn’t comment on the case due to the fact that it was ongoing. It remains ongoing as Sky Sports have reported. However, the leak has caused a running commentary on every available scenario that could occur from here. What wasn’t meant to occur is now playing out in public. The entire situation is now a mess that does need some form of clarity sooner rather than later.

The 115-story still has many more miles to run. Manchester City will continue to fight to clear their name after Friday’s report of the club being found guilty of breaching the Premier League’s financial rules. It is a story that will not reach a conclusion any time soon. In fact, it could run for many more years to come given City’s determination to fight. It isn’t possible for the Premier League to release the independent panel’s verdict and reasons for their decision at this stage due to Manchester City’s appeal of the verdict and the case remains ongoing as reported by The Mirror . That makes the entire story a bigger mess, for lack of a better word, than it should be.

Since Friday, the 115-story surrounding Manchester City has dominated the headlines. It will continue to do so for a considerable length of time. However, you can’t help but wonder how and why we’ve gotten here in a case that was meant to be surrounded by confidentiality clauses that have all seemingly been wiped away since the verdict of the case against City became public. Some form of clarity is needed on the affair, but is highly unlikely to arrive any time soon.