Enzo Maresca has defended his Man City players for their celebrations at the end of Sunday’s 3-0 win over Liverpool at Anfield.
In their first match since an independent commission found them guilty on all charges of breaching the Premier League‘s financial rules, Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Rayan Cherki all scored to keep the club at the top of the table.
The City squad were criticised afterwards for celebrating with the away fans at the full-time whistle, but Maresca feels his players should celebrate victory even with all of the issues currently facing the club.
Enzo Maresca defends Man City celebrations at Anfield
“Criticised for what? We won 0-3 at Anfield. What do you want us to do?” the City boss said at his pre-match press conference ahead of taking on PSG in the UEFA Champions League.
“I am here today, the players are here today, to win tomorrow. We work every day to win games.
“It is the only thing that we can think and focus on. The rest is just things from outside which we need to deal [with]. We were so, so happy from inside the pitch and the dressing room.”
City will continue to contest the charges after lodging an appeal against the verdict. If unsuccessful, the club faces any number of punishments, ranging from fines and points deductions to possible expulsion from the Premier League.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding City’s future, Maresca says he is not stressing out as the outcome is not within his control.
“I said many times, I am completely calm and relaxed. I promise you that I stress a lot about game plan and how we train.
“I don’t stress about things I don’t control. The message with players will be the same.
“As I said, we know how serious the situation is. It is not something we can something. Where we can do something is inside the pitch.
“The noise around the team is a big noise but we need to try to deal with that and try and make our noise, to win games.”
Read – Ruben Dias reveals Man City players held meeting over charges
Read More – Man City hierarchy continue to embarrass themselves
See Also – Five of the best Premier League away kits in 2026/27