City fans to take over Manchester during open-top bus parade
Pep Guardiola and his team will show off their Champions League trophy tonight
Man City fans are set to take over the streets of Manchester after a wild weekend in Istanbul.
Thousands of supporters flew to the Turkish city to watch their team win the Champions League final against Inter Milan on Saturday.
On Monday, the Man City squad will celebrate their treble with an open-top bus parade through Manchester’s city centre at around 6.30pm.
A live stage show will be set up in the city’s Oxford Street, where fans can celebrate.
While the squad have already arrived back in England, some fans are staying an extra night in Istanbul, enjoying the city’s sights before flying home early on Monday morning to catch the parade.
Lifelong fan Malcolm Muir, 57, from Stretford, Manchester, said his plan was to enjoy dinner and drinks in the city on Sunday evening.
“We’re going to the Asian side (of Istanbul) on a boat trip, have some food over there,” he said.
“Then we’ll come back, have some drinks, and enjoy Istanbul.”
He said he was hoping to get back in time to watch the parade in Manchester to mark the Champions League win, as well as their triumph in the Premier League and FA Cup.
“The parade’s in the afternoon, because of the time difference we’re getting two hours back.”
He said that it will be the fifth Man City parade that he has attended.
“It’s going to be great,” he said.
“For my daughters, they’re 14, it will be their fifth parade.
“In my lifetime I’ve had five parades as well.
“So shows just how good it is to be a blue just now.”
The celebrations following the final whistle on Saturday night went on until sunrise.
The club’s supporters packed the area around Nevizade street, dancing and celebrating.
Stephen Woods, 30, said: “We were on the steps outside our hotel until 6am. They were still going until 8am.
“Our room overlooks (Nevizade Street). We slept for something like an hour, but it is what it is.”
He said that even the locals got involved in the celebrations.
“All of the locals got involved, which we didn’t expect,” he said.
“Getting out of their cars with boom boxes and singing with us. We just didn’t expect that, it’s the craziest city we’ve ever been to.”
Richard Dickinson, 50, from Sheffield, also celebrated the win with family and friends until sunrise.
“It was a surreal experience,” he said. “We were always typical City, we were never going to be a big team, and everything like that.
“My grandad always said our time will come.”
Published: by Radio NewsHub