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If Man U Loses Saturday, They Could Get Sued

Manchester United has won the Premier League championship so its game on Saturday against Hull City is like one of those late September contests in the late 1950s in the American League and the Yankees had won the pennant back in August. You know the kind, the ones that just don't mean anything. On Wednesday of next week, however, in Rome, the Red Devils have a game that means a whole lot, perhaps even more than a Premier League championship. On Wednesday, Man U takes on Barcelona in the Champions League final as they attempt to win back to back Champions League crowns for the first time since AC Milan did it in 1989 and 1990.

That Wednesday game is the rub as Hull City is fighting to stave off relegation. A win against Man U on Saturday will keep it in the Premiership and if Sir Alex decides to rest all of his starters, a not unlikely prospect, and field a primarily reserve team, that possibility is greatly enhanced. The possibility of Sir Alex doing just that has enraged the three North Eastern clubs, Newcastle United, Middlesborough and Sunderland, that are battling with Hull to stay up.

Paragraph E20 of the Premiership rules states: "?In every league match each participating club should field a full strength team.? If Man U fields a primarily reserve team and loses the North East clubs have threatened to sue it, at least according to SunSports. In addition Premier League officials have indicated that they are watching and could take action. Such action could include fines or point deductions. If penalized four points, that would result in Liverpool gaining the top spot. However, the rule has never been enforced so it would seem unlikely that Man U would actually be penalized but the litigation is another matter entirely.

Full post as published by Sports Biz on May 20, 2009 (boomark / email).