Khaldoon Al Mubarak has written to Manchester City supporters, and the timing is no accident. The chairman's letter landed on the club's official site after reports suggested City will be found guilty of 114 of the charges brought against them.

There is a limit to what he can say. Confidentiality, he stresses, ties his hands — there is plenty he would like to address, but the ongoing legal processes mean he cannot. Instead, he repeats the statements issued when those initial reports surfaced through various media outlets, and the club's position from February 2023 when the charges were first brought. Reading between the lines, his belief in the club's innocence remains absolute, and so does his determination to prove it.

The charges, of course, are not the only thing on the agenda. As I wrote this morning, these rules were set out to stop City from joining the top table. Look at Aston Villa and Newcastle. Both have been forced to sell their best players, and both are left asking how they can challenge for top-four places season after season when the regulations handicap them at every turn. These rules did not exist before our takeover, when Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal could spend what they liked. How is that fair?

Yet the rules must be obeyed. If City have not, punishment will follow — and the shape of that punishment will probably take as long to decide and implement as the investigation itself has dragged on. Supporters are left in the uncomfortable position of waiting.

Speaking personally, I would be heartbroken if our owners have lied to us. But until proven otherwise, I will back my club and the board all the way. With everything they have done for us, it is the least they deserve.

In the letter, Khaldoon stresses the importance of confidentiality, essentially saying there is lots he would want to say but due to the ongoing legal processes he is unable to at this moment in time.

For now, the letter offers no new answers, only a reminder that the fight continues. City fans will read it, take what they can, and carry on. It is what we do.