LEWIS STEELE: Manchester City’s frustrating journey to European champions took far too long… but the euphoria was well worth the wait for supporters
There were no dry eyes in the stands as Manchester City lifted the third of a glorious treble trophy just before 1am at Ataturk Stadium – and barely an eye open as a sea of hungover fans poured into Istanbul’s two airports. sunday morning flooded.
Most of them had put their heads on the pillow for a nap after partying on the streets of Istanbul, with many trips feeling like a business opportunity by extending opening hours into the wee hours and beyond.
City fans ironically chanted ‘champions of Europe, we’ll never sing that’ as the call for morning prayers echoed from Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque and was heard in Taksim Square and along the banks of the Bosphorus.
Now they can sing that they are champions of Europe and rival fans will have no sticks to poke them with. Yes, the 115 Premier League allegations should not be ignored, but sanctions will not erase the supporters’ memories of winning this Treble and this year’s many trophies.
So those blurry supporters bought duty-free souvenirs at both Istanbul and Sabiha airports. Like Liverpool who still talk about 2005 almost daily, City fans will cherish this trip to Turkey forever.
Manchester City won the Champions League for the first time after beating Inter Milan
No sanction will take away the Man City supporters’ memory of winning this historic treble
City fans will forever cherish the trip to Turkey, as Liverpool did when they won it in 2005
A City fan functioned on a single hour’s sleep and showed off a new tattoo on his calf at Sabiha airport that read: ‘Treble winners 2023’. Those who were still awake sang about City tracking everywhere, a Fleetwood Mac spider during the flight.
And they did. “This win is for those who are out in York in our darkest time,” said one fan. “It’s for those at Porto two years ago and those at Wembley in 1999.”
That refers to the loss in the Champions League final to Chelsea in 2021 and Paul Dickov’s exploits at the turn of the millennium. It had not escaped the notice that the former striker was partying in the Stadsnummer on Taksim Square.
It was also for fallen soldiers. One fan tweeted an image of her holding up a photo of her late mother in the Ataturk, saying, “We finally did it. This is for you mom.’
The night threatened to become memorable for all the wrong reasons. Fans from both City and Internazionale battled through three-hour traffic jams to approach the Atatürk, which lies in Istanbul’s western wilderness.
More than 70,000 fans made the journey from where Europe meets Asia in the city center to this desolate country accessible with limited resources. Metro services would move without frequency and with massive overcrowding.
A year after the chaotic organization and police action at the Stade de France in Paris, UEFA has clearly not learned its lesson. Was the Ataturk Stadium fit for purpose? It wasn’t in 2005 when Liverpool won here, it’s not now.
Disturbing photos circulated of fans traversing dual carriageways on foot, including one in a wheelchair, as taxi drivers saw an opportunity to swindle gamblers.
Shuttle bus services did their best to transport Yenikapi fans, but many complained of waiting times and cramped conditions on board. “Three hours without a toilet break to get miles from a stadium, well done UEFA,” said one fan.
The police stopped the fans outside the city end, with a certain farce at Gate R threatening to turn into overcrowded queues. Fortunately, no fans were injured and all made it safely into the stadium.
The arduous, frustrating journey took far too long, but it was worth the wait. And when Ilkay Gundogan lifted the gleaming Big Ears trophy and the fireworks exploded, City fans’ euphoria was well worth the wait.
The Ataturk is located 24 kilometers outside of Istanbul and there is only one accessible road that leads to the ground
Some supporters came in taxis, while others got out of their taxis and walked the last few miles