Manchester City have done a lot of things on a football pitch—scored hat-tricks, dazzled with tiki-taka, and walked the Premier League runway like it’s Paris Fashion Week. But this past season, they couldn’t seem to master one thing: being on time.
Yes, the reigning masters of ball possession were caught red-handed delaying kickoffs and second-half restarts—nine times, to be exact. The Premier League, never one to miss a scheduling hiccup, responded with a stinging £1.08 million fine. That’s the second year in a row, bringing City’s two-season timekeeping tab to a cool £3 million. Who knew tardiness was this expensive?
Manchester City and the Curious Case of the Longest Two Minutes
The most glorious of all delays? A delay before the second period of the Manchester derby lasting 2 minutes and 24 seconds. Erik ten Hag somewhere had been watching his watch. Somewhere else, Sir Alex Ferguson felt a disturbance in the Force.
The Premier League, being the stern headmaster it is, reminded everyone that punctuality isn’t just polite—it keeps broadcasters from throwing their remotes.
Manchester City’s Million-Pound Reminder
The fine includes delays at both the Etihad and away grounds like Crystal Palace and Ipswich Town. Manchester City might’ve been fashionably late, but it wasn’t chic enough to avoid punishment. The club has since apologized and promised their watches now run on Greenwich Mean (Guardiola) Time.
City might dominate possession, but time? Not So Much
While City clinched third in the table behind Arsenal and Liverpool and suffered a rare FA Cup final heartbreak, their punctuality clearly didn’t win any silverware.
City may control the ball, dictate the tempo, and mesmerize fans. But as the Premier League just proved, no one’s bigger than the clock. Not even Manchester City. Time waits for no one—not even Guardiola’s stopwatch. Here’s hoping next season they bring trophies and a better relationship with punctuality.
