Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham could have to wait two months to discover the outcome of Manchester City’s UEFA ban appeal.
City were banned from UEFA club competitions for the next two seasons and fined 30million euros (£24.9million) after being found to have committed "serious breaches" of financial regulations.
The reigning Premier League champions were said to have overstated sponsorship revenue in accounts submitted between 2012 and 2016, in findings by European football's governing body.
But City confirmed on February 26 that they had made an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, against the findings by UEFA’s CFCB adjudicatory chamber.
But should City's ban be upheld, and if they finish inside the Premier League's top four, then the side sitting in fifth place would qualify for the Champions League, it is believed.
While the two teams sides who finish sixth and seventh would be handed a place in next season's Europa League. That is because the Europa League place in the table would drop down one place, and because City claimed the Carabao Cup earlier in the season.
Court of Arbitration for Sport Secretary General Matthieu Reeb recently confirmed that no request had been made for a public hearing in City's appeal, meaning the public and the media will not be able to watch proceedings which are expected to start on Monday.
And now The Mirror are reporting that City may have to wait two months to learn whether their ban has been overturned.
They claim that CAS sources have informed them that a final decision on City's Champions League fate for next season could take up to two months to be delivered.
It has long been reported that both UEFA and City want the appeal decision delivered before the draw is made for next season's Champions League group stage.
While Ferran Soriano, City's chief executive, has already declared the club's desire for an “early resolution” to the case, to enable them to plan accordingly.
