Tony Pulis says Stoke were cheated in 2011 FA Cup final

Tony Pulis has reignited one of English football’s most painful “what if” moments, saying Stoke City were “cheated” out of the 2011 FA Cup final after Manchester City were found guilty on virtually all counts in the Premier League’s financial rules case. His remarks have added fresh emotion to a verdict that is already shaking the sport.

A final result viewed in a different light

Manchester City beat Stoke 1-0 in the 2011 FA Cup final at Wembley, with Yaya Touré scoring the decisive goal. At the time, Stoke accepted defeat against a star-studded side and a team managed by Roberto Mancini. But Pulis now says the result feels very different in the wake of the ruling against City.

Writing in his BBC Sport column, the former Stoke manager asked the question many supporters have quietly wondered since Friday’s announcement: “When do we get our FA Cup?”

It is a question loaded with frustration, regret and hindsight. Pulis said he does not expect trophies or medals to be handed back, but he believes the verdict has left Stoke fans with a deep sense of injustice.

The scale of the complaint

City have denied wrongdoing and are expected to appeal, with the club insisting the process is still ongoing. But Pulis says the damage to Stoke’s sense of achievement is already done.

He argued that City’s financial strength gave them an unfair advantage, pointing specifically to Touré’s transfer from Barcelona and his wages. Touré reportedly cost £24 million and earned about £180,000 a week, figures Pulis contrasted with Stoke’s more modest resources.

Why Pulis believes the verdict changes everything

Pulis said his earlier disappointment had been softened by the feeling that Stoke had simply lost to a bigger, better team. That perspective has now shifted. “Today, I feel very differently,” he wrote, describing the verdict as leaving a “very sour taste” and asking what punishment should now follow.

His anger is not limited to the final itself. He believes the wider period of City’s dominance, from 2009 to 2018, affected multiple clubs and may prompt others to consider legal options. “We lost, but to a team that have been found guilty of breaking the financial rules set out by the Premier League,” he said.

That line captures the heart of the issue: this is not just about one final, but about the ripple effect of years of success built, in Pulis’s view, on rule-breaking. For Stoke fans, the memory of that day at Wembley now sits alongside a much bigger debate about fairness in football.

City insist nothing has changed

Manchester City’s response has been firm. Khaldoon al-Mubarak, the club’s chair, said there remains “so much noise swirling around us” but insisted the club’s position has not changed. He added that City had faced challenges before and would not allow others to undermine their momentum.

A club spokesperson also said the Premier League process remains ongoing and that City have respected due process over many years. In their view, the case is far from finished and no conclusions should be rushed.

What happens next?

The Premier League’s case is now heading into a highly sensitive phase, with an appeal expected. The outcome could determine whether the punishment is a fine, a points deduction or something even more severe. It is unlikely, however, that any retrospective trophy changes will be straightforward.

For Pulis, the symbolism matters as much as the punishment. Stoke’s day at Wembley cannot be replayed, and the emotion of that defeat cannot be recovered. “We won’t ever get that day back,” he wrote, summing up the feeling that still lingers more than a decade later.

Whether or not the formal process brings a major sanction, the verdict has already altered how one famous final is remembered. What was once a narrow defeat now looks, for Pulis and many Stoke supporters, like a moment shaped by a broken system rather than pure sporting merit.