The Premier League said Manchester City had used ‘sham’ commercial contracts to inflate revenue and understate costs by more than £900 million over nearly a decade. (EPA Images pic)

MANCHESTER: Britain's prime minister Andy Burnham said he would be "really concerned" if Manchester City's Abu Dhabi owners decided to sell the club after they were found guilty of serious breaches of financial rules.

Burnham praised the ownership group led by Sheikh Mansour for its investment in Manchester since taking over the club in 2008.

"I would be really concerned to lose them," he told the BBC. "They've been such a huge partner in the building of modern Manchester and obviously the building of Manchester City into the global force that it is."