In their first match back after the international break, Manchester City secured a vital 3-0 win over Liverpool at Anfield, days after an independent Premier League commission found them guilty of 114 of the 115 charges brought against them. City have appealed the verdict, and the sanctions have yet to be decided.

Travelling City fans brought out inflatable bananas, brandished prop cash and sang self-deprecating chants about following Khaldoon Al Mubarak "down to League Two" before and after the match on Merseyside.

Smiles from Erling Haaland, Rayan Cherki and several other City players after the final whistle added to Liverpool's frustration following a match that had been relatively even before Ryan Gravenberch was sent off in the 62nd minute.

For Enzo Maresca and his Manchester City players, it is business as usual for now, but uncertainty remains over the club's future. When will the club actually be punished for their wrongdoings and what, exactly, will those punishments be?

There is still a long way to go in the process, beginning with City's appeal. However, the Premier League must follow through on its disciplinary process to protect the competition's integrity.

Peter Schmeichel Calls for Five Seasons of Points Deductions

Former Manchester United and Denmark goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel has outlined what he believes Manchester City's punishment should be.

Like Sean Dyche, Schmeichel does not believe relegation to the Championship or a lower division is the right punishment. Instead, he has proposed sustained points deductions while Manchester City remain in the Premier League.

Schmeichel believes Manchester City should start each of the next five Premier League seasons with a 25-point deduction in response to the financial-rule breaches identified between 2009 and 2018.

Speaking to Viaplay he said: "I think, of course, you keep them in the Premier League, but for every year they’re in the Premier League, the next five years, they start on -25 points. It’s also staying as a reminder to everybody else that when you cheat in the Premier League, and if you cheat all the other clubs, it’s heavy."

Schmeichel Calls for a Transfer Ban, Heavy Fine and Sale of Man City

Alongside a 25-point deduction at the start of each of the next five seasons, Schmeichel has called for a substantial fine and a five-year transfer ban.

"I think this is important: a transfer ban for five years and a big fine. And then I think the ownership should be forced to sell the club. I don’t think they’re fit to run this football club and they’re not fit to run a football club in England," the former Manchester United goalkeeper urged.

While Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan and the City Football Group are at the heart of the financial violations made by the club from the period of 2009 to 2018, there were a lot of hands in the pot, so to speak.

There's countless people that could directly, or indirectly, have had knowledge of what the club's ownership was doing and that it went against financial rules in place by the Premier League, so for Schmeichel, they should also be held accountable for their participation.

"Also, I think bans for everyone who has been in on this. They cannot operate in football," he added.

Why Schmeichel Prefers Future Sanctions to Stripping Titles

On the question of titles won during the period covered by the financial-rule case, Schmeichel does not believe stripping Manchester City of their silverware is essential to the punishment.

The underlying question is whether the financial-rule breaches affected the resources available to build the squads that won those trophies. Schmeichel, however, believes future sanctions matter more than whether those titles are retrospectively removed.

Even still, retrospectively taking away titles won from a decade ago is not a solution Schmeichel sees as viable, or relevant. Rather, the sanctions he's recommended moving forward are what he sees as the best way to actually punish the club.

"Take the titles away or let them keep the titles. I don’t think it matters one way or the other," he said.

Ultimately, Schmeichel's proposals remain recommendations rather than confirmed sanctions. City have appealed the independent commission's verdict, and the Premier League's disciplinary process must still determine what consequences, if any, follow once the appeal has been resolved.

The club continues to maintain its innocence, making the outcome of the case a significant issue for the league and its member clubs.

The wider question is how the Premier League can ensure that its financial rules carry meaningful consequences while protecting the credibility of the competition.

Whether the eventual punishment involves points deductions, financial penalties or other measures, the decision will help shape how future breaches are treated. For supporters, the priority is a clear and consistent process that applies the rules fairly across the league.