Manchester City are attempting to block UEFA's case against the club for allegedly breaching Financial Fair Play rules, sources told Rob Harris of The Associated Press.
European football's governing body is pursuing a Champions League ban for the back-to-back English champions for apparently breaking its spending regulations. However, Harris has been told by people with knowledge of the case that Manchester City have requested intervention from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to end proceedings.
Manchester City say there's no case to answer, so they claim it shouldn't be passed from UEFA's investigators to the organization's judges. The club previously said UEFA moving the case to its judicial branch "ignores a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence provided by Manchester City."
According to leaked documents published by German outlet Der Spiegel, Manchester City sidestepped Financial Fair Play regulations - restrictions in place to prevent clubs from spending over their means - by signing overvalued commercial deals with companies connected with the club's Abu Dhabi-based owners.
The Premier League outfit is accused of deceiving UEFA for several years and is understood to have been inconsistent with answers it submitted during the body's investigatory phase.
