Manchester City was forced into an embarrassing climbdown in the Carlos Tevez affair Thursday after the English soccer players' union ruled there was "no justification" for the club to fine the striker four weeks' wages.
In what will be perceived as a small victory for Tevez, City had no choice but to slash the striker's punishment by £400,000 ($643,000) to the standard maximum fine of two weeks' wages for refusing to warm up during the UEFA Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich last month.
But City reacted with dismay to being backed into a corner by the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) and accused PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor of a conflict of interest.
In a statement, the Premier League leader said, "Manchester City is disappointed by the apparent PFA conflict of interest evident in this process. Carlos Tevez has been personally represented throughout by the PFA chief executive, on whose considerations the club has been informed that the PFA has made its decision.
"Without recourse to the PFA decision available, the maximum two-week fine provided for in standard player contracts will now be applied in relation to the misconduct of Carlos Tevez."
City announced Tuesday that Tevez, having been found guilty of five breaches of contract, had been "fined four weeks' wages," saying the club had "written to the PFA for ratification of the fine."
Clubs cannot impose a fine of more than two weeks' pay without the PFA's permission, which is granted only in extreme cases.
"Initially, the post-match comments from the manager (Roberto Mancini) suggested that the player had refused to play, which led to all the public debate and to him being vilified by the fans. But the evidence did not support that," Taylor said Thursday.
