Soccer-Man City need siege mentality after rules breach verdict, psychotherapist says

Manchester City Urged to Build Siege Mentality After Financial Rules Breach

Psychological Impact and Club Response to Financial Rule Breaches

By Nick Said

Sept 30 (Reuters) - Manchester City need to develop a siege mentality and quickly address the potential fear among their players after being found guilty of breaches of Premier League financial rules, sports psychotherapist Steve Pope told Reuters on Wednesday.

The Premier League said City used "sham" commercial contracts as part of schemes to inflate revenue and understate costs by more than £900 million ($1.2 billion) over nearly a decade, which is likely to lead to a heavy sanction, possibly relegation.

City have said they will appeal the verdict in a case that could drag on for years, creating prolonged uncertainty for players and club staff.

Developing a Siege Mentality

"The message I'd be giving the players is that they are a family under attack. They're footballers, and they have nothing to do with the financial side of the club," said Pope, who is based in Blackpool, England.

"Whatever happens, the players need to come through this with their dignity and self-respect intact. They want the supporters to be able to look back at this period and say that, whatever happened to the club, the players never let them down."

Challenges of International Duty

PLAYERS ON INTERNATIONAL DUTY

Pope believes City are not helped by the fact that the verdict was released while their players are scattered around the world on international duty.

"The club is losing valuable time when it comes to maintaining harmony," he said. "I'd want everybody together, having frank discussions and making sure the players know as much as possible about the situation.

"If you put people in the picture and explain what's going on, it reduces anxiety and fear. If you can show them that there is a plan for every possible scenario, you encourage greater loyalty and stability. 

"But if you lull players into a false sense of security, it's inevitably going to affect their confidence, and that can very quickly have an impact on training and performances."

Maintaining Unity and Addressing Anxiety

Pope, who has consulted at several Premier League clubs, including Manchester United, said the City squad have to stick together with a common purpose.

"If there is a pervading atmosphere of doom and gloom, they've got big problems," he said. 

"I'd be saying to the players: 'Right now, the world is against us. The football world is picking on us. Let's go out and show them who the best team in the world is'."

He added it would be natural for anxious players to start thinking about their futures, and that in itself was a danger.

"Once panic and anxiety take hold at a club, it can become a negative and toxic situation very quickly," Pope said. "That can come from the top. If the chairman and the financial staff aren't giving the players the right answers about the future, they can start to see Manchester City as the Titanic and begin looking for ways to escape."

(Reporting by Nick Said in Cape Town, editing by Ed Osmond)