To the "bemusement of other English clubs, who must include four players they have developed themselves in their European squads," the only club-trained player in Man City's squad is Dedryck Boyata, according to Ian Herbert of the London INDEPENDENT. Players union FIFPro "has been involved in the slackening of restrictions on City," possibly pressing UEFA to allow City "fewer home-grown players by indicating that the governing body could be guilty of creating a restriction of movement for players with a more stringent regime." City was initially ordered by UEFA to "reduce their Champions League squad from 25 to 21 players, as punishment for breaching FFP rules." It "was thought that would mean City complying with the same strictures as other clubs." That would mean 13 overseas players could be fielded, with four "club-trained" and four "association-trained" players like all the rest. But UEFA then "quietly agreed that City could reduce their non-overseas quota to five, to compensate them for reduced squad numbers." Other clubs will "also argue that they should have been told earlier" that
City and Paris St. Germain -- which also has only one "club-trained"
player in its Champions League squad -- "were not to be limited to only
13 foreign players" (INDEPENDENT, 9/11).
