Have the 115 charges 'tainted' Guardiola's achievements?

[Getty Images] "The modern Manchester City doesn't really exist without the way the club has been operating," says The Athletic's James Horncastle - but Spanish journalist Guillem Balague believes a guilty verdict shouldn't "taint" Pep Guardiola's achievements. The 55-year-old won 17 major trophies during his 10 years at Etihad Stadium, including six Premier League titles and a Champions League. "If there was evidence he participated in any wrongdoing it would definitely be examined, but there is zero evidence of that," Balague said on BBC Radio 5 Live's Euro Leagues podcast. "A finding about Manchester City isn't a finding about Pep Guardiola. "You can question the club's behaviour without pretending that everything he did as a manager is fraudulent. You can recognise what he achieved without defending the club. In my opinion, these aren't contradictory positions. In my eyes, his work should not be tainted by this. "He asked the lawyers and Khaldoon Al Mubarak many times if there was anything wrong - and, in different ways, they all told him there is nothing wrong. He can only go about his business after that. "If you look at how much money he spent compared to others, Manchester City were the fourth net-spending Premier League club across the 10 years he managed them. "People can say as often as they want that he is a cheat or a fraud, but they are only trying to mix the behaviour of a club - who are part of an ongoing process, it has to be said - with the world of a manager who reached extraordinary heights with a team that wasn't guaranteed to reach them." However, Horncastle said: "I disagree. The players he got in were already being talked about as being subject to interest from the very best clubs around the world - and Manchester City were able to afford both their fees and their salaries. "If you look at the independent commission's findings, the club circumvented the Premier League's rules in this way with the 'disguised funding scheme' that was elaborated on from the start of 2010. "In my opinion, the modern Manchester City doesn't really exist without the way the club has been operating." Listen to the full podcast on BBC Sounds [BBC]