Roy Keane has delivered a blistering verdict on Manchester City's financial scandal, declaring he would throw his medals away if he had played for the club during the period covered by the Premier League ruling.
The former Manchester United captain accused City of cheating after they were found guilty of breaching more than 100 financial regulations, plunging the club into a crisis with potentially seismic consequences.
City deny wrongdoing and can appeal the verdict until Friday, October 2.
But Keane offered a ruthless assessment of what the findings mean for the players who helped deliver their silverware.
Speaking on ITV, he said: "If I was a player, I'd be 100 per cent sticking those medals in the bin. Of course you would, it's cheating."
His criticism went beyond the trophies themselves, with the outspoken pundit arguing that City's success on the field could not be separated from the financial breaches.
"They won it on the pitch because cheating was going on," Keane added.
"They knew it would hurt a lot of people, but they've still done it."
The explosive comments followed Tuesday's confirmation that City had inflated their commercial revenue by £830million between 2009 and 2018.
That period brought three Premier League titles, an FA Cup and three League Cups, achievements which are now being discussed against the backdrop of the damning financial findings.
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Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said the club had "systematically broke Premier League rules for nearly a decade."
For City, attention now turns to an appeal and the prospect of punishment.
A points deduction and relegation are among the possible outcomes, although no sanction has yet been confirmed.
A transfer ban has also been raised as a possibility, while the club's owners have faced calls to sell up.
City's response, however, has been defiant.
The club said they were "surprised" by the ruling and continue to reject the allegations against them.
Chief executive Ferran Soriano used a video message to staff to challenge the basis of the case, describing the outcome as the result of a "Premier League conspiracy theory."
He insisted the dispute centred on an accusation about the source of sponsorship money, rather than accepting the league's interpretation of City's finances.
"This has gone on for so long that it's important to remind ourselves that the whole Premier League case against us is based on a single false accusation; that the owner's personal money was somehow and secretly put into the club via some sponsors from Abu Dhabi," Soriano said.
City will return to action against Liverpool on October 11 after the international break.
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