Tony Pulis has spoken for many connected with Stoke City after the panel in the Manchester City financial rules case returned guilty verdicts on the majority of the 115 charges the club faced, saying he feels "cheated" over the 2011 FA Cup final defeat and questioning what, if any, redress the Potters and other affected clubs might receive.

A day that can never be given back

Writing for BBC Sport, the former Stoke manager described taking the club to Wembley in May 2011 as the highlight of his 50 years in football as a player and manager. For a club that had never won the FA Cup in their long history, it was, in Pulis's words, "our one day in the sun."

He recalled the supporters who had travelled from all corners of the world, many of whom had spent or borrowed considerable sums just to be there, and the famous Wembley rendition of Delilah from the Stoke end. He also paid tribute to the Coates family, who have bankrolled the club through good times and bad, describing their presence alongside him as "really touching."

"That day in May will also live long in the memory of all Stoke fans who followed their team to Wembley dreaming that they would win the greatest club cup competition in world football for the first time in their long history," Pulis wrote.

The financial disparity laid bare

Pulis was candid about the gulf in resources that existed between the two clubs at the time. Yaya Toure, who scored the only goal from outside the area, was reportedly earning ten times what Stoke were paying any of their own players. The Ivorian midfielder alone had cost more, when City signed him from Barcelona in 2010 for around £24m, than Stoke's entire starting eleven.

At the time, Pulis said, he could accept defeat to a team of superstars managed by Roberto Mancini; he had buried his disappointment in pride at the performance his players had produced against the odds. Now, with the guilty verdicts delivered, he views events very differently.

"We lost, but to a team that have been found guilty of breaking the financial rules set out by the Premier League," he wrote. "In doing so, they did not just beat Stoke in an FA Cup final, they collected a stack of titles and went on to completely dominate English football for more than a decade."

What happens next?

Pulis was clear-eyed about the realistic prospects of any direct sporting redress. He does not expect a phone call from Manchester City offering to return the 2011 FA Cup and the winners' medals their players received, nor does he seriously believe titles or trophies will be handed back. A points deduction and a substantial fine are, in his view, the far more likely outcomes, with City expected to appeal the verdict.

Nevertheless, his sense of grievance is plainly shared by supporters of all the Championship club that took on one of Europe's richest squads that afternoon. "Whatever happens next," he wrote, "we won't ever get that day back and the chance to celebrate around Stoke-on-Trent with the cup and medals we so honestly fought for."

For Stoke, who are currently enjoying a strong run of form in the second tier, the verdicts have reopened wounds that many connected with the club thought had been sealed by time. Pulis's column gives voice to a feeling that is likely to resonate far beyond the Potteries, among the supporters of every club that competed during Manchester City's period of alleged rule-breaking between 2009 and 2018.

Whether the appeal process will further prolong that sense of injustice, or whether a final ruling will at least bring clarity, remains to be seen. For now, Stoke fans and their most celebrated modern manager share one unambiguous sentiment: they feel cheated.

Frequently asked

What did Tony Pulis say about Stoke City and the Manchester City charges verdict?
Writing for BBC Sport, Pulis said he feels cheated by the verdict that Manchester City broke the majority of the 115 financial rules they faced, particularly given that his Stoke side lost the 2011 FA Cup final to them. He does not expect trophies to be returned but says Stoke fans will never get that day back.
Will Stoke City get the 2011 FA Cup if Manchester City are stripped of titles?
Pulis himself does not expect Manchester City to hand back the 2011 FA Cup or any other trophies, saying a points deduction and a large fine seem far more likely. City are also expected to appeal the guilty verdicts, so any final punishment remains some way off.
How did Stoke City perform in the 2011 FA Cup final against Manchester City?
Stoke lost 1-0 to a heavily favoured Manchester City side, with Yaya Toure scoring the only goal. Pulis praised his players for a fully committed performance against opponents whose squad costs dwarfed anything Stoke could match at the time.