MANCHESTER — Manchester City are set for a hostile reception at Liverpool on Sunday in their first outing since being found guilty of over 100 breaches of Premier League financial rules.

City have appealed and proclaim their innocence, but the Premier League leaders’ place in the division is now at threat following findings they used “sham” sponsorship deals to inflate revenues and reduce costs by more than £900 million ($1.2 billion).

Manchester United and Tottenham are both badly in need of a win when they meet at Old Trafford, while Arsenal aim to bounce back at home to Leeds following a rare defeat.

AFP sports looks at the pick of the action as the English top-flight returns after a three-week international break.

City face the music

City’s transformation into the dominant force in English football since an Abu Dhabi-backed takeover 18 years ago has cost Liverpool more than most.

The charges labelled against City cover the period between 2009 and 2018, but the foundations they built in that time ensured they remained the Premier League’s top dogs during the bulk of Pep Guardiola’s subsequent time in charge.

Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool twice missed out on the title to Guardiola’s side despite amassing over 90 points.

Those battles to be crowned champions of England over the past decade have turned this fixture into the Premier League’s marquee match-up and the eyes of the football world will be on Anfield again come Sunday.

City have won every game since Enzo Maresca replaced Guardiola, but their title challenge is likely to be ruined by a sanction unless they can overturn the verdict of an independent commission.